Faculty Retirement

Rice Retiree Definition and Benefits

Retirees are individuals who leave the University's employ at the conclusion of a minimum of ten consecutive years of benefits-eligible service and for whom the sum of age and length of service is at least 65. A short summary of the retirement process is given in the downloadable document Rice University Retiree Package. Being a retiree of Rice University entitles an individual to certain benefits and privileges that may change from time to time. Please check out our Retiree Benefits page for more information.

Are you considering retirement? Please click here to check out our Step-by-Step Guide to Five-Year planning of Retirement.

What is Faculty Phased Retirement Program (FPRP)?

FPRP is offered to tenured faculty who will be between 62 and 70 years of age and have at least 10 years of continuous service at Rice as of August 15 in the calendar year they commence the program. Eligible faculty members will receive an email from VPAA in November with detailed program information as well as how to proceed. Please click here for more information.

Other Resources
  • Association of Retired Rice University Faculty
  • Fondren Library Access
    • All Rice Retirees may use all library resources by visiting the Fondren Library in person.
    • Emeritus faculty (Policy 201 3.c.1) currently have access to all of Fondren Library's resources from off campus.
    • For non-Emeritus Retired Faculty for accessing journal databases from off campus, please sign up for access to the Rice Retired Faculty Digital Library via EZproxy. Qualifying non-emeritus retired faculty will be invited to sign up via a message to their Rice email address. Access must be renewed annually. For more info, please email vpaa@rice.edu.
  • Houston Public Library provides a wealth of resources. You don't have to be a resident of Harris County to register for an account, but you do need to be a resident of Texas.
  • JSTOR is available at no cost through the Houston Public Library to Texas residents, however, their title list will not necessarily match that provided through Fondren Library.
    • Users can read online up to 6 articles per month for free (80% of JSTOR journal content, ranging from the year 1870 to 3 years ago)
    • Individual subscriptions (JPASS): $19.50/month or $199/year
  • Faculty Departure Procedure
  • Departing Faculty Checklist
Important Contact Information
Aetna Medical 800-905-7670 Fidelity 800-343-0860
Aetna Dental 877-238-6200 TIAA 888-842-7782
Aetna Vision 800-793-8616 Unum (STD, LTD) 888-857-0157
Envision RX 800-361-4542 Payflex (HSA) 800-284-4885
Express Scripts 800-363-9019 Rice HR 713-348-2514
Medicare 800-772-1213 Rice Benefits 713-348-2363
WageWorks (FSA) 877-924-3967 Rice Wellness Manager 713-348-3538
WageWorks (COBRA) 877-502-6272