Philosophy
“What is the ethical thing to do?” can be interpreted in various ways. What rules do ethical theories prescribe? What reasons can be given for and against different ethical theories? How have different ethical theories been developed –…
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Rice University
Rice University's course descriptions average 66.6 on the 100-to-0 ruler: clearly left of center. Across all 100 schools, the average is 67.5, so Rice University reads 1.0 points further right.
Liberal (100)center (50)Conservative (0)
Where its courses fall
6%Far left92–100
37%Left75–91
43%Center-left59–74
8%Center42–58
<1%Center-right26–41
3%Right9–25
2%Far right0–8
Subject places what a course studies, not the side it takes. A course on slavery or the Holocaust lands far right and a course on Marx or the Soviet Union lands far left, whether the course praises, criticizes or simply describes it.
Underlined: words the model quoted from the description when we asked it, after scoring, to explain its score.
Furthest-left subjects
Anthropology
This course engages Black feminism as a foundation for science and technology studies (STS). STS is a field that focuses on how power is infused in how we create scientific knowledge, how we disseminate “objective” information, and how it…
Anthropology
This course will use both historical and contemporary readings focusing on Black and decolonial/anticolonial feminisms as theory and praxis to reflect on the particular experiences of Afro-descendants throughout the Americas. Through a…
Furthest-right subjects
Ethnic & African American Studies
This graduate seminar considers the history and historiography of slavery comparatively in the era of Atlantic-racial enslavement. Considering slavery through the lens of sovereignty and political claims, this course traces slavery in…
History
Course will explore the Founding Fathers' attitudes towards slaves, towards slavery, and towards racial difference, beginning with interpretations of the Founders as a group, and moving to case studies of individual founders. Students will…
History
Seminar uses sources from the time and historians' interpretations to analyze Nazism and the Holocaust, especially pre-war racial policy; economic policy; labor; the war experience; and the phases and legacies of the Holocaust.
Why this number, in plain words
Political lean of course descriptions. Average Framing score (0 = far right, 50 = center, 100 = far left) of the scored courses in the group.
50 is the survey-anchored center of US adults on each issue (the "moderate" place of the ANES/GSS/PRRI seven-label ruler), not the cohort midpoint; scores above 50 read leftward, below 50 rightward.
Counted: courses with a Framing score (categories L/R/B/C). The likely range (95% interval) is 65.3 to 67.9; a comparison whose range overlaps this one is not a reliable difference.
- Most course descriptions carry no political lean at all and are not in this average; the "share described from the left" view counts them.
- Readings are of catalog description text, not of teaching, syllabi or individual professors.
Rice University by department (share of courses described from the left)
| Department | Left-framed share | Courses | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnic & African American Studies | 37.1% | 35 | view |
| Anthropology | 13.1% | 259 | view |
| Sociology | 12.2% | 131 | view |
| Women's & Gender Studies | 10.2% | 49 | view |
| History | 6.9% | 204 | view |
| Art & Art History | 6.1% | 245 | view |
| Political Science | 5.0% | 159 | view |
| English & Comparative Literature | 4.6% | 153 | view |
| Philosophy | 2.6% | 77 | view |
| Religious Studies | 2.2% | 183 | view |
| Economics | 0.9% | 112 | view |
| Psychology | 0% | 127 | view |
Lean (mean Framing score) is not published per department within a school; only the left-framed share is. Department rows carry no interval.
Details: exact rows, definitions and method
| Name | Metric | Value | 95% interval | n | scored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rice University | mean_bias_score | 66.6 | 65.3 – 67.9 | 1,734 | 120 |
| All 100 schools | mean_bias_score | 67.5 | 67.4 – 67.7 | 124,290 | 10,124 |
- Formula
- SUM(bias_score) / COUNT(bias_score)
- Interval
- normal approximation: mean +/- 1.96 * sd / sqrt(n), sample sd (n-1); undefined when n < 2
- Model / prompt / snapshot
- gpt-5.6-sol · r12 (2026-10-16-le49-r12) · 6df50b10
- Metric caveats
- Scored courses only (L/R/B/C); N and I carry no score and are excluded, so n here is smaller than the group's course count. Scores are model readings of catalog description text against a fixed anchored definition, not teaching or syllabi. The interval covers sampling noise in the mean only; it does not represent model reading error. Every value carries a `method` label: exact_rows or histogram_midpoint.