Houston's Rice University tops new 2025 list of best colleges in Texas

report

The Ivy League of the South has done it once again. Photo via Rice University

The most prestigious higher education institution in Houston has done it again: Rice University has topped WalletHub's 2025 list of the best colleges and universities in Texas for 2025.

The just-released list analyzed more than 800 colleges and universities in the United States using 30 metrics to determine their rankings.

Rice claimed the No. 1 spot in Texas and in WalletHub's regional category of best universities in the South. The school also ranked as the No. 6 best college nationwide.

Rice earned first place in the category for the "best" (or lowest) on-campus crime rates, and ranked 13th for its gender and racial diversity. The school ranked No. 24 in the category for net cost. According to U.S. News and World Report, tuition and fees at Rice cost $60,709 per year. Rice also has an acceptance rate of eight percent, earning the university No. 27 in the category for admission rates.

Here's how WalletHub broke down the rest of Rice's ranking, where No. 1 is the best and No. 49 is the worst:

No. 26 – Student-faculty ratio
No. 43 – Graduation rate
No. 47 – Post-attendance median salary

Rice's recent accolades add to an ongoing winning streak of high rankings. In September, the private university ranked as the No. 1 best Texas college for 2025 by U.S. News, and ranked No. 18 nationally. Education information and review platform Niche also recently ranked Rice the 15th best college in the country and the No. 1 best in Texas for 2025. And Forbes named Rice No. 9 in its 2024-25 list of top U.S. colleges.In the spring, Rice's Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business ranked No. 2 in the national publication's ranking of the best graduate schools in Texas.

The only other Houston university to earn a spot in WalletHub's report was the University of Houston, earning No. 12 in Texas and No. 288 nationally.

The top five universities that outranked Rice in the national rankings were Princeton University (No. 1), Yale University (No. 2), Harvard University (No. 3), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (No. 4), and Dartmouth College (No. 5).

The top 10 colleges and universities in Texas are:

No. 1 – Rice University
No. 2 – The University of Texas at Austin
No. 3 – Trinity University
No. 4 – Texas A&M University-College Station
No. 5 – Southwestern University
No. 6 – Texas Christian University
No. 7 – Austin College
No. 8 – Texas A&M International University
No. 9 – University of Dallas
No. 10 – Southern Methodist University

The full report can be found on wallethub.com

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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The University of Houston — along with a couple of other Houston-area schools — made the cut of the top 100 schools for U.S. patents granted. Photo courtesy of UH.edu

Houston-area schools score spots on of annual list of top universities for patents issued

new report

The University of Houston System reigns as the patent king among colleges and universities in the Houston area.

A new list from the National Academy of Inventors puts UH in a 63rd-place tie — with 27 utility patents issued in 2023 — among 100 recognized schools. As the university explains, utility patents are among the world’s most valuable assets because they give inventors exclusive commercial rights to produce and use their technology.

Other schools in the Houston area that show up on the list are the Texas A&M University System, tied for 30th place with 66 patents, and Rice University, tied for 93rd place with 14 patents.

The University of Rochester in New York shares the No. 63 spot with UH.

“This ranking highlights the commitment of our faculty researchers, who explore frontiers of knowledge to enhance the well-being of our society,” Ramanan Krishnamoorti, vice president of energy and innovation at UH, says in a news release. “At UH, we are committed to creating new technologies that drive innovation, to boost Houston’s economy and tackle some of the most perplexing problems facing us.”

Among the UH discoveries that received utility patents last year are:

Methods of targeting cancer stem cells
Materials, systems, and methods for carbon capture and conversion.
A medical device that positions and tracks the muscular activity of legs.

Elsewhere in Texas:

University of Texas System, holding the No. 3 spot with 235 patents
Texas Tech University System, tied for 74th place with 20 patents
Baylor University, tied for 80th place with 17 patents
University of North Texas, tied for 90th place with 15 patents

Ahead of the UT System on the list are the University of California (546 patents) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (365 patents).

“As we look at the current and future state of innovation in our nation, we need to ensure that the U.S. is remaining competitive in the international innovation ecosystem,” Paul Sanberg, president of the National Academy of Inventors, says in a news release. “Protecting intellectual property is a key component to this, and the … list allows us to recognize and celebrate universities and their faculty, staff, and students who are not only innovating at high levels but taking the additional step of protecting their IP through patenting.”

Here's what student teams from around the world were invited to compete in the Rice Business Plan Competition. Photo via rice.edu

Annual student startup competition in Houston names teams for 2023

getting pitch perfect

Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship has named the 42 student startup teams that were extended invitations to compete in the 23rd annual Rice Business Plan Competition

The 2023 startup competition will take place on Rice University campus May 11 to 13, and the teams representing 37 universities from six countries will pitch to investors, mentors, and other industry leaders for the chance to win funding and prizes. Last year's RBPC doled out nearly $2 million in investment prizes.

This year, Rice saw its largest number of student startups applying for the RBPC internal qualifier from within campus. The university selected three to move on to compete at RBPC in May — Sygne Solutions, Neurnano Therapeutics, and Tierra Climate, which also received a total of $5,000 in cash prizes to these top three teams.

The 2023 RBPC will focus on five categories: energy, cleantech and sustainability; life science and health care solutions; consumer products and services; hard tech; and digital enterprise.

This invited companies, if they attend, will join the ranks of the 784 teams that previously competed in RBPC and have raised more than $4.6 billion in capital, as well as seen more than 50 successful exits including five IPOs.

The 2023 Rice Business Plan Competition invitees, according to Rice University's news release:

Active Surfaces, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Adrigo Insights, Saint Mary’s University (Canada)
AirSeal, Washington University in St. Louis
Algbio, Yeditepe University (Turkey)
Arch Pet Food, University of Chicago
Astria Biosciences, University of Pittsburgh
Atma Leather, Yale University
Atop, UCLA
Biome Future, University of Florida
BioSens8, Boston University
BlueVerse, Texas Tech University
Boardible, Northwestern University
Boston Quantum, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
ceres plant protein cereal, Tulane University
Citrimer, University of Michigan
Dart Bioscience, University of Oxford (United Kingdom)
DetoXyFi, Harvard University
E-Sentience, Duke University
Edulis Therapeutics, Carnegie Mellon University
FluxWorks, Texas A&M University
Integrated Molecular Innovations, Michigan Technological University
Inzipio, RWTH Aachen University (Germany)
LoopX AI, University of Waterloo (Canada)
Magnify Biosciences, Carnegie Mellon University
MiraHeart, Johns Hopkins University
MyLÚA, Cornell University
Outmore Living, University of Texas
Pathways, Harvard University
Pediatrica Therapeutics, University of Arkansas
Perseus Materials, Stanford University
Pike Robotics, University of Texas
Quantanx, Arizona State University
Sheza, San Diego State University
Skali, Northwestern University
Sundial Solar Components, University of Utah
Thryft Ship, University of Georgia
Tierra Climate, Rice University
TrashTrap Sustainability Solutions, Visvesvaraya Technological University (India)
Unchained, North Carolina A&T State University
Unsmudgeable, Babson College
Vivicaly, University of Pennsylvania
Zaymo, Brigham Young University

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Building a biotech workforce: How this Houston program is shaping the next generation

future focused

Houston is currently in need of biomanufacturing professionals to keep up with the ever-growing industry. That's what Saniya Mansuri, health care consultant for BioPath @ TMC, says.

“Houston has lost out on a big biopharmaceutical company. And when there was a feasibility study that was done, it was identified that one of the reasons that Houston wasn't chosen was the lack of a workforce and a lack of workforce development programs,” she explains.

Mansuri and the TMC Innovation team are doing just that with the introduction of the new program. She moved from Toronto in 2023. When she applied for a role at TMC Innovation, she was handpicked to help shepherd the BioPath program, thanks to her background that included starting a nonprofit for underserved youth in Canada.

The goal of the BioPath program is to attract young people considering going into the trades to learn the skills to become biomanufacturing professionals. According to BioPath’s website, 42 percent of TMC institutions anticipate a great need for biotechnicians in the near future, but there’s a lack of places for workers to train that aren’t part of a four-year degree. BioPath not only helps to recruit youths to careers that only require two years of training, but educates them for success in their newly chosen jobs.

“For the role of biomanufacturing technician, you can do a certificate program, get certified and enter into an entry level career that pays upwards of $50,000 — a stable career where there is a lot of development and job mobility involved,” says Mansuri.

This school year saw the debut of a pilot program that began with marketing and awareness to begin to get kids excited. Working with the organization Bridge Year, BioPath has created a booth for career fairs at which there’s a simulation of the skills involved in column chromatography that potential technicians would be learning. The booth is currently touring HISD high schools.

BioPath is also partnering with the national nonprofit, Learning Undefeated, to create a mobile STEM lab that will park at schools starting in January.

“Instead of students going to a biology class, you would swap it out for a class on this mobile STEM lab, and we have a biomanufacturing activity and curriculum that the students would learn,” explains Mansuri.

But that’s only the beginning. BioPath is looking at securing internships for the students, as well as sponsoring interested students in attending a biomanufacturing summer camp run by Texas A&M. Once educated, Mansuri and her team will help their charges with certification, mentorship and finding jobs post-certification.

Mansuri says she’s already received emails from interested students who have taken part in the “Career Test Drive” booth, but expects more after a soft launch in February in which 200 high school students will come to the TMC to learn more. The future for biomanufacturing in Houston is looking more promising already.

Coming soon: Houston Astros unveil new ballpark naming partner for 2025

welcome to the ice box

The Houston Astros are about to have the coolest ballpark in Major League Baseball. The team announced on Monday, November 18 that its has reached a naming rights agreement HVAC manufacturer Daikin Comfort Technologies North America, Inc.

Beginning on January 1, 2025, the stadium will be known as Daikin Park (die-kin). Scheduled to run through the 2039 season, the new name replaces Minute Maid Park, which has been the stadium’s name since 2002. It opened in 1999 as Enron Field.

Astros fans online are already calling the new stadium “The Ice Box,” replacing its informal “The Juice Box” moniker. That name feels likely to stick.

Japan-based Daikin Industries is a leading manufacturer of HVAC systems. It sells air conditioning units and other products under brand names such as Daikin, Goodman, Amana® and Quietflex. Critically, it operates Daikin Texas Technology Park in nearby Waller, which is the largest HVAC manufacturing facility in North America. The company employs approximately 10,000 people in Greater Houston, according to a release.

“We are excited to be partnering with Daikin for our ballpark’s naming rights,” Astros owner Jim said. “Daikin is an international company that proudly calls the Greater Houston area its North American home. The Houston Astros and Daikin share the same values, a commitment to excellence and a desire to give back to our local community. As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of this ballpark in 2025, I am proud to have Daikin alongside us to create even more special memories for our fans now and in the future.”

The Astros will use the revenue for new stadium amenities and other upgrades. It will also continue the team’s various community initiatives. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. the Houston Chronicle notes that naming rights deals may be worth anywhere from $3.5 million per year (T-Mobile park in Seattle) to $11 million per year for the Texas Rangers’ Globe Life Field.

The team’s first game in Daikin Park will take place on Monday, March 24, which it plays an exhibition against its Triple-A affiliate, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys. It will open the regular season on Thursday, March 27 against the New York Mets.

“Daikin fit all of the criteria we set out to find in a naming rights partner,” Astros senior vice president Matt Brand added. “Their name and reputation fit our iconic downtown Houston home, and their values mesh perfectly with those of the Astros. We are grateful to partner with the entire Daikin team and to help them succeed in their business goals. Daikin Park will be a special place for our fans for many years to come.”

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Photos: Houston Innovation Awards celebrates city's startup, tech leaders at annual event

event recap

The 2024 Houston Innovation Awards season has come to a close with last week's event.

With a crowd of around 500 attendees, the Houston Innovation Awards, which took place on November 14, celebrated over 40 finalists and a dozen winners across categories. Click here to see who won an award.

Learn more about this year's honorees in InnovationMap's the editorial series:

Special thanks to this year's sponsors: The Houston Innovation Awards is sponsored by Texas Medical Center, Milam & Greene Whiskey, Weber Ranch Vodka, EIGHT Beer, Karbach Brewing Company, Topo Chico, Houston Community College, Microsoft, Halliburton Labs, Mercury, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Rice Innovation & Ion District, Growth Pods, and Hunton Andrews Kurth.