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Houston is a vibrant, dynamic city full of opportunity and diversity. Rice graduate students take advantage of all this large, diverse metropolis has to offer -- from plays, concerts and cultural events in the nearby Theater District to professional sports (Houston has five professional teams) to world-class museums just blocks from the university.
Living in the nation's fourth largest city has many advantages, chief among them, the lowest cost of living when compared with other major urban areas. Houston's housing costs are 46 percent below the average for 24 metropolitan areas with populations of more than 2 million and the overall costs are 23 percent below average for this group, according to the ACCRA Cost of Living Index for the second quarter of 2007.
Coupled with that, Rice graduate students in the School of Engineering receive stipends competitive with or higher than those at other major universities.
Affordable housing in Houston is relatively easy to find, with many apartment complexes located very near to the light rail line, which has two stops adjacent to campus. The light rail also offers easy and affordable access to Houston's excellent restaurants, lively music scene and festivals and other events with a uniquely Houston flavor, like the annual International Festival and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The MetroRail, which stops adjacent to campus, makes access to many of these events easy and affordable, and many area attractions and merchants also offer discounts to Rice students.
Separating Houston Fact from Fiction
Fact:
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Fourth-largest city in the U.S. with more than 4 million residents living in the eight-county metropolitan area -- an area larger than the state of New Jersey.
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Headquarters to 22 Fortune 500 companies
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Home of the Texas Medical Center, the world's largest center for medical research, education and patient care.
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Home of NASA's Johnson Space Center
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One of only five cities in the U.S. with resident companies in the performing arts: theater, ballet, symphony and opera.
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Home to five major professional sports teams: the Houston Astros, two-time NBA champion Houston Rockets, NFL's Houston Texans, four-time champion Houston Comets of the Women's NBA and the MLS Dynamo soccer team.
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Known as the "urban forest," Houston has lush vegetation, with more than 508 parks and open areas, 53 of which are in downtown alone. We have an arboretum, rose garden, Japanese gardens and seven city golf courses.
Fiction:
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It's hot in Houston: Yes, the summers are hot, with temperatures averaging 90 degrees during the height of summer, which lasts about 95 days. But the winters are wonderful, with average temperatures in the 60s, and rarely is there snow or ice.
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Only cowboys live in Texas: Perhaps on the prairies 500 miles away, but in the Houston metropolitan area, more than 90 languages are spoken, with 83 consulates from countries around the globe. A benefit of this rich culture is more than 11,000 restaurants and the opportunity to indulge in every major cuisine of the world.
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There's no cultural activity in Houston: Houstonians support more than 500 cultural, visual and performing arts organizations, 75 art galleries and five major museums.
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It's expensive to live in the big city: Houston's big, but it's cheap. The cost of living is far below the average for most metropolitan areas.
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1st among major metro areas for the lowest cost of living
1st in job growth
90 languages spoken throughout the area
2 major airports: Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport
5 major sports teams
50 miles from the Gulf of Mexico
42-plus nonprofit institutions in the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical center in the world
5,000-plus restaurants
4th among the world's best cities for WiFi connectivity
1 of only 5 cities in the U.S. with resident companies in the performing arts: Alley Theatre, Houston Ballet, Houston Symphony and Houston Grand Opera
15 museum-area institutions, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and the Houston Museum of Natural Science
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