| Honestly, she sounds like a better fit for Yale, but she should visit both places if she can. Caltech is truly a unique school - it's not for everyone. I loved the seriousness of the honor code (all take home exams, everyone has keys to everywhere on campus). My kids loved the traditions of pranks and the nerdy culture - even my non-science kid. Some people find the dining hall antics sophomoric, others love the culture. It's very, very geeky. A girl from our high school is there - she's happy, but was feeling pretty overwhelmed by the beginning physics course. It's often described like drinking from a firehose. You definitely have to be committed to science, though I knew one person when my husband was a grad student there who ended up majoring in English with plans to write about science. Caltech has a beautiful campus, and I loved living in southern California for a few years. |