To calculate the unit rate of beads per bracelet, we need to divide the total number of beads by the number of friends (or bracelets Ruby is making).
Ruby has a total of 156 beads and is making bracelets for 12 friends.
\[ \text{Beads per bracelet} = \frac{\text{Total beads}}{\text{Number of friends}} = \frac{156}{12} \]
Calculating this:
\[ \frac{156}{12} = 13 \]
So, the unit rate of beads per bracelet is 13 beads.