Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

What Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies does

Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (GPS) is the central administrative office within Rice University, a private non-profit research university founded in 1912 and headquartered in Houston, Texas. GPS coordinates graduate admissions, academic policies, financial support, postdoctoral affairs, and student services across Rice's eight academic schools: the George R. Brown School of Engineering, School of Architecture, Jones Graduate School of Business, Glasscock School of Continuing Studies, School of Humanities and Arts, Shepherd School of Music, Wiess School of Natural Sciences, and School of Social Sciences. The office serves prospective graduate students (research-based M.A., M.S., doctoral, professional master's, and certificate programs), postdoctoral researchers (250+ scholars supported via the Rice Academy of Fellows and related programs), and international students (including 31 Fulbright students from 20 countries in a recent academic year, supported by STEM OPT designation).

The portfolio spans graduate degree programs, postdoctoral support services, the annual Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium (GCURS), fellowship coaching and writing groups, financial support (doctoral stipends at a minimum of $34,000 over 12 months as of Fall 2024, plus emergency loans, special endowed fellowships, and travel support), and writing/dissertation resources. Distribution occurs through the centralized gradapply.rice.edu portal, campus and virtual tours, ambassador networks, and partnerships with EducationUSA, Fulbright, NASA, the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (Rice-IITK Collaborative Center), and Texas Medical Center institutions. Core technology is described as "graduate and postdoctoral academic programs and research support infrastructure" with no proprietary software products, AI capabilities, APIs, or commercial applications disclosed.

GPS is funded as an administrative cost center within Rice University rather than as an independent revenue-generating entity; no standalone revenue, ARR, or funding rounds are disclosed, and tuition rates are published on cashier.rice.edu. Strategic positioning emphasizes competitive doctoral stipends, top-of-funnel undergraduate research recruitment, international student attraction, and external recognition (Council of Graduate Schools Debra W. Stewart Award in 2022; consistent NSF Graduate Research Fellowship awards of 32 in 2023 and 38 in 2022; Soros, Schmidt Science, and Quad Fellowship placements).

Name

Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

Legal name

Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

Website

https://graduate.rice.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1912

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies is the central administrative office within Rice University that coordinates graduate admissions, financial support, postdoctoral affairs, and student services across eight academic schools, serving prospective graduate students, current doctoral and master's candidates, and 250+ postdoctoral scholars.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education (Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies)

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Doctoral Research Universities (Multi-Disciplinary) (EDAHABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Management Research Institutes & Doctoral (PhD/DBA) Programs (EDAHAHAO), Research Grants, Fellowships & Stipends (International) (EDAIAOAJ)

Keywords

• Graduate education programs
• Postdoctoral research support
• Doctoral financial support
• Fellowship coaching services
• Professional development programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies is the central administrative office coordinating graduate and postdoctoral education at Rice University. It administers research-based M.A., M.S., and doctoral degree programs, professional master's and graduate certificate programs, postdoctoral scholar support, and a portfolio of services including admissions, financial support (doctoral tuition coverage and minimum $34,000 annual stipend), fellowship coaching, writing groups, and signature events such as the Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium.

Product overview

Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (GPS) is an administrative office that provides comprehensive support services for graduate education and postdoctoral scholars. It is not a single unified software product but rather a portfolio of interconnected educational support services and programs. The GPS portfolio includes graduate degree programs across multiple academic schools (Architecture, Business, Engineering, Humanities and Arts, Music, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences), postdoctoral support including the Rice Academy of Fellows, research symposium programs (GCURS - Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium), fellowship coaching and professional development resources, writing group programs for doctoral students, financial support services including fellowships and travel grants, health insurance coordination, and thesis/dissertation submission support. These services collectively form an ecosystem supporting graduate students and postdocs from application through degree conferral.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Graduate Degree Programs Research-based M.A., M.S., and doctoral degree programs plus professional master's programs and graduate certificate programs across architecture, business, engineering, continuing studies, humanities and arts, music, natural sciences, and social sciences.
• Postdoctoral Support Services Comprehensive support for postdoctoral scholars including appointment guidelines, benefits administration, Rice Academy of Fellows fellowship opportunities, and open position listings.
• Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium (GCURS) Annual research symposium that connects undergraduate students with graduate research opportunities at Rice University and partner institutions.
• Fellowship Coaching Program Coaching and application support program that helps graduate students secure competitive external fellowships such as the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship.
• GPS Writing Groups Research-focused writing groups and workshops supporting doctoral students through candidacy exams, paper submissions, and dissertation completion across STEM, social science, humanities, and business fields.
• Financial Support Services Comprehensive financial support for graduate students including doctoral stipends (minimum $34,000 over 12 months as of Fall 2024), emergency loans, special endowed fellowships, travel support, and the Expanding Horizons Fellowship Program for international research.
• STEM OPT Designated Graduate Programs Graduate programs designated for Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension for international students studying in STEM fields at Rice University.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Fulbright ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRice University hosts Fulbright students from around the world. In recent years, Rice welcomed 31 Fulbright students from 20 countries in one academic year, and 91 Fulbright students have been hosted in total. Fulbrighters participate in various programs including the Engineering Professional Master's Program (EPMP).
• EducationUSAmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducationUSA advisers visit Rice as part of Houston higher education tours, helping students connect with American universities and providing firsthand views of the campus and programs.
• Indian Institute of Technology KanpurmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRice and IIT Kanpur committed to cooperate on research through the Rice-IITK Collaborative Center. Initiatives span energy, environment, health, and computer science.
• CERAWeekminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRice graduate researchers pitch energy startups at CERAWeek's Energy Venture Day, a competition connecting startups with global energy leaders.
• NASAmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRice maintains research connections with NASA. Graduate alumni have secured positions as flight controllers at NASA, and students participate in space-related research.
• Houston Methodist Hospital / Texas Medical CentermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRice campus is located next to the Texas Medical Center, the world's largest medical center, enabling research collaborations in health and biomedical sciences.
• Rice Academy of FellowscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRice Academy of Fellows supports postdoctoral scholars at Rice University, providing fellowship opportunities and research community for early-career researchers.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Duke University Graduate School: Duke's central Graduate School at a top private research university. Comparable in multi-disciplinary scope, fellowship coaching programs, and postdoctoral support infrastructure.
• University of Chicago Graduate Programs: University of Chicago's graduate education office at a top private research university. Comparable in academic excellence, full funding for doctoral students, and cross-disciplinary research.
• MIT Office of Graduate Education: MIT's central graduate education office, operating in a top-tier private research university. Highly comparable as a STEM-strong private R1 with extensive fellowship coaching and postdoctoral programming.
• Carnegie Mellon University Graduate Education: CMU's central graduate education office at a private R1 with strong STEM and interdisciplinary programs. Comparable in fellowship coaching, interdisciplinary research, and stipend-funded PhD offerings.
• Princeton University Graduate School: Princeton's dedicated Graduate School administering PhD and master's programs at a leading private research university. Directly comparable in scale, mission, and financial-support offerings.
• Johns Hopkins University Graduate Programs: JHU's central graduate education office at a leading private research university. Comparable in biomedical-adjacent research opportunities, fellowship support, and large-scale graduate/postdoctoral populations.
• Vanderbilt University Graduate School: Vanderbilt's Graduate School administering programs across a private R1 university. Comparable in multi-school structure, financial support commitments, and professional development offerings.
• Northwestern University The Graduate School: Northwestern's dedicated Graduate School at a leading private research university. Directly comparable in administering multi-school doctoral programs, postdoctoral affairs, and financial support.
• Stanford University Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education: Stanford's central graduate and postdoctoral education office at a top private research university. Directly comparable as a private R1 institution with comparable multi-disciplinary doctoral programs and significant fellowship support.
• Caltech Graduate Studies Office: Caltech's graduate education office within a small, elite private research university. Closely comparable to Rice given similar size, STEM-heavy profile, and full funding for doctoral students.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RiceUniversity
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/RiceUniversity
• Facebookfacebook.com/RiceUniversity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/ricegradschool
• Instagraminstagram.com/riceuniversity

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Rice University Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies