Rice University will begin offering a Master of Artificial Intelligence degree in the fall of 2027, with prospective students able to apply this year, according to Dateline Rice.
Computer science professor Chris Germain was interviewed about the new program by Houston Public Media and KUHF, and ABC 13 Eyewitness News in Houston also reported on the degree.
The announcement comes as Rice faculty and research feature prominently in national and international coverage. Rice political science professor Mark Jones is quoted in a CNN Online report on where Republicans are playing offense ahead of the midterms, and The National News Desk cited Rice in reports on forecast shifts in 15 House races and on high-price concerns weighing on consumer sentiment and GOP midterm hopes. KRLD-AM in Dallas also covered the midterm outlook.
In rankings news, Rice is No. 1 in Texas and No. 16 nationally in U.S. News & World Report's latest college rankings, one of six Texas colleges to crack the 2027 Top 100 Best Colleges list, according to USA Today. Rice also ranked No. 44 in Stacker's national rankings of U.S. colleges with the best return on investment, published by MSN Money.
Rice research drew attention in several outlets. An article featured collaborative Rice research into CEO salaries for nonprofit hospitals and health care systems, quoting Derek Jenkins, a scholar at Rice's Baker Institute for Public Policy, in The Charlotte Observer. The Oregonian mentioned collaborative Rice research into health insurance premiums, and NoonPost.com cited a study by Baker Institute fellow Jim Krane into Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping.
Other coverage included Rice history professor Douglas Brinkley, quoted in The Minnesota Star Tribune on protecting public lands, and Baker Institute fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, who authored an article in the Gulf Times on Manchester City. Bioengineer.org featured Rice research on how fat metabolism and RNA-based molecular machinery are woven into mitochondrial quality control and host defense against a human pathogen, while Interesting Engineering highlighted collaborative Rice research on a new class of materials called autferroics, quoting postdoctoral research associate Jun-Jie Zhang.
In sports, Rice's volleyball team defeated the University of Alabama at Birmingham 3-2 on Sept. 27 but lost to East Carolina University 3-1 on Sept. 25. The football team fell to Fresno State 38-24 on Sept. 26, the soccer team lost to the University of Tulsa 3-0 on Sept. 27, and Rice's cross-country teams competed in the University of Missouri's Gans Creek Classic on Sept. 25.