Paul Rice was a Human male who served as a Starfleet officer during the mid to late-24th century. He attended Starfleet Academy with fellow Starfleet officer William T. Riker. Riker remembered him as a confident man, almost to the point of arrogance; he managed to get away with this trait because he had a tendency to be right. When he took his final test in Advanced Navigation at the Academy, there were three options available; Rice ignored them, and came up with his own solution. As a result, he was awarded the highest score for the test, which was still in use at the Academy, albeit with four available solutions. Based on this profile, Counselor Deanna Troi reasoned that such a man would have a tendency to fight a battle, as opposed to retreat from one.