Introduction
Caltech
California Institute of Technology
Information Summary
| Overall Score (about) | 100.0 |
| Total Cost On-Campus Attendance | $72,084 |
| Admission Success rate | N/A |
| ACT / SAT 75%ile scores | 36 / 1580 |
| Student Ratio Students-to-Faculty | 7 : 1 |
| Retention (full-time / part-time) | 98% / N/A |
| Enrollment Total (all students) | 2,233 |
Academics
The academic experience here is unlike that of any other university in the world. Every student has to learn the fundamentals of each major aspect of science while staying well rounded with a required number of humanities courses. Homework is done in collaborative groups and tests are almost all take-home. Participation in scientific research is easily accessible to every undergraduate and world-renowned faculty members interact with students on a daily basis. With big-time scientific research happening in an intimate small-school environment, the academic environment at Caltech is like no other.
When freshmen arrive, they are all enrolled in math, physics, and chemistry courses. This is the beginning of the core curriculum, which is the heart of a Caltech education. Every undergraduate, whether majoring in biology, economics, literature, or chemical engineering, has to take five terms of physics, two terms of chemistry, one term of biology, two terms of introductory laboratory, two terms of science writing, twelve terms of humanities and social sciences, three terms of physical education, and one term of freshman
Most Popular Fields of Study
Gallery
Admissions
Caltech is not for everyone, and getting in is not easy. By campus tradition, the target size of the freshman class is always 215
Financial Aid
Applying for first-time financial aid is a simple process that mirrors that of other universities. Every applicant must fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FASFA) and the College Scholarship Service (CSS) Financial Aid PROFILE Application. These documents enable the Financial Aid Office to determine the amount that the student and his or her family can reasonably be expected to contribute toward an education. Any difference between that amount and the cost of attending is considered the student
Student Financial Aid Details
Students
Houses
Social life is generally not one of the reasons a high school student chooses to study here, but every year, freshmen are surprised to find an active social scene centered around the seven undergraduate houses. Blacker, Fleming, Lloyd, Page, Ricketts, Dabney, and Ruddock House are descendants of fraternities that dominated the campus in the 1920s. This fraternity lineage is most obvious at family-style house dinners each night. Student waiters set the tables, serve food, and refill drinks; everyone must ask permission to get up from the table, and dinner ends with announcements from the house officers. Dinner is certainly not a formal affair though; each house adds its own quirky rules; for example: no
Student Enrollment Demographics
Student Graduation Demographics
Athletics
While academic competition is almost nonexistent, the seven houses engage in constant competition through a year-round schedule of interhouse sports. The houses play softball, soccer, swimming, track, basketball, tennis, Ultimate Frisbee, and football, earning points for compiling the best record in each sport. The house with the most points at the end of the year wins the interhouse trophy. The games are competitive, but everyone gets a chance to play
Traditions
Over the years, students have been able to shape their own unique way of life without much administrative interference. This has created many quirky traditions, one of the wackiest being senior Ditch Day, which was featured on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. One day every May, all the seniors ditch their classes and leave campus. Many years ago, underclassmen began to prank seniors
Alumni
Thirty-two Nobel Prizes have been awarded to alumni and faculty. A Cal Tech education primes students for a career in scientific research, and a majority of graduates follow that path. On average, about half of graduates go on to earn a Ph.D., which is a significantly higher percentage than any other university. These are the students that the school is designed for
This website and its associated pages are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by this school.
StateUniversity.com has no official or unofficial affiliation with California Institute of Technology.