Why Caltech is different--an open letter - Page 2

SteelPangolin · 12-21-2008, 12:41 PM

This is an excerpt from an email that went out today to all Caltech undergraduates about a report on campus life and academics that they've been working on for a year or so now. If Tom's open letter is the theory, here are the experimental results:

Last March, the Academics and Research Committee (ARC) hosted the Student
Experience Conference (SEC) to discuss four major undergraduate life issues:
"Residence Life", "Teaching and Advising", "Caltech Syndrome", and
"Student-Faculty Interactions". Over 200 students, faculty, and
administrators came in an honest and open discussion on the Caltech
undergraduate experience. It brought many current issues and existing
problems to faculty and administration attention, as well as suggesting
numerous ideas for improvements and solutions to make student life better.

The ARC has finally summarized and compiled all ideas and opinions from the
SEC into a report. There are three versions:

* Main Report: http://arc.caltech.edu/files/SEC_report.pdf
* Two Page Summary: http://arc.caltech.edu/files/sec_2page_summary.pdf
* Full, 40-Page Report of Suggestions: http://arc.caltech.edu/files/SEC_full_suggestions.pdf

Printed copies of the main report will be distributed to the eight houses and
to all top faculty and administrators.

lizzardfire · 12-23-2008, 02:29 AM

One of the consequences of the SEC is the brand-new ad-hoc core committee, which I serve on. We are currently in the process of attempting to redesign core from the ground up.

Also, to call my letter theory is nice, but a bit too far. It's just my opinion.

Ben Golub · 12-24-2008, 12:33 AM

Quote:

Also, to call my letter theory is nice, but a bit too far.

I agree. SteelPangolin has a point but there's plenty of good at Caltech.

thekonkoe · 12-28-2008, 03:37 PM

I'm not sure if I read this last year before I came to Tech, but the original post was an almost perfect copy of why I chose to come to Caltech and like it so much. As for the comments on AP and IB, I would say that while some students have courses beyond them, they are part of the prep for Caltech if they are available. That said, if you're going to Caltech, then you're probably passionate about something science, math, or engineering related and have gone beyond these courses. I realise that this years applications are already in (right), but if you have such a passion then you should think about how you feel about the Houses and the Honor Code and consider coming here.

FuriousTadpole · 02-12-2009, 05:07 PM

The letter scared the crap out of me. Seems that Caltech is all about work, work, work. And some more work.

I care about learning but I also care about life.

threepointone · 02-12-2009, 10:39 PM

Oh, there's a life at Caltech for sure outside of work--certainly not the kind you'd expect, though. Interesting things come out of the hovse/house system.

But if that kind of work scares the crap out of you, then Caltech is not the school for you.

Respectfully · 05-04-2009, 11:10 PM

I've been viewing this board for awhile, and finally made and account. I am a Junior currently and considering applying to CalTech next year. Your open letter is very helpful and I appreciate it.

Thank you, Respectfully.

lizzardfire · 05-06-2009, 11:02 PM

Glad it helped

fizix2 · 06-24-2009, 03:32 AM

Quote:

If you view college as just means to an end (even if the ‘end’ is grad school) or a four-year party, Caltech is probably not right for you.

but caltech is a four year party

no seriously,
i have a 3.8 gpa here,
and i work less at caltech than i did in high school

don't think you won't get to have fun,
i spent most of this term
sitting in other people's rooms,
going out to places,
and playing on the internet

typical day (if there's a set due tomorrow):
play around until 9 or 10,
do a little work until midnight,
then wake up early in the morning (6-7 am) and finish it before class
the problem sets don't take ridiculously long if you concentrate on them and don't go on the internets...it might take like five hours if it's a hard set, three if it's not

and the only thing you have to do besides problem sets is read the textbook,
which is like ten or twenty pages a week.
and if you estimate one hour for every eight pages,
that takes you like three hours per class,
which isn't very much if you take five classes,
and only two of them require you to read the textbook

don't get me wrong. you will have to work.
but it's not as bad as people say.
and we do get a lot of days where we don't have to work at all.

but hey,
your mileage may vary <3
there are definitely people who do work work work
they are the ones who get gpas above 4.0
but i'd say the best part of caltech is when you're not working,
so those guys are missing out.

lizzardfire · 06-24-2009, 04:42 PM

I'm glad that you're having a lot of fun, fizix, but I don't think most techers would agree with you about Caltech being a "four year party". I'm not sure what year or major you are, but I've had plenty of sets that took me (and my colleagues) over fifteen hours, and I've had a couple that have approached thirty. I know plenty of people that work endlessly and don't have anywhere near a 3.8 GPA, let alone above 4.0.

Caltech can be a lot of fun, but I'm fairly sure that the workload you're describing is not a typical one.

fizix2 · 06-24-2009, 08:36 PM

Quote:

but I've had plenty of sets that took me (and my colleagues) over fifteen hours

0_0
never had one of those before,
but i am merely a frosh,
so i assume it gets harder

jdhutchin · 06-24-2009, 09:41 PM

Quote:

never had one of those before,
but i am merely a frosh,
so i assume it gets harder

Yes, it does. And just because you find it easy, doesn't mean everyone will.

Quelloquialism · 06-24-2009, 09:56 PM

I've had one set that took me maybe ten hours, but it was for a class that I had no business taking, and I ended up failing out of it anyway. But yeah, I'm definitely working harder here than I ever did in high school, and my third term frosh year gpa is much lower than 3.8. There were other circumstances that made things a bit harder this term, and I'm far from the brightest person at this place, but yeah, it hasn't really been too easy for my tastes. But again, there are people who can pull off good grades without working like crazy...best way to find out is to wait until you're here, and test your limits, I think.

lizzardfire · 06-24-2009, 11:25 PM

That's a good assumption, fizix, and it's one you might want to mention when you make statements about how long assignments take. I mean that in the kindest and most gentle way--I just want to make sure that the students interested in Tech know what they are getting into (in frosh year and beyond).

fizix2 · 06-25-2009, 04:20 AM

^yeah yeah whatever.

Quote:

I just want to make sure that the students interested in Tech know what they are getting into

what you should be taking from this, prospective students,
is you can't be like "HOW HARD IS CALTECH"
"AM I GONNA SURVIVE HERE EVER EVER"
because it depends a ton on who you are,
and how much background you have from high school,
and also,
if you can do your problem sets
without getting distracted a lot and going on the internets
(i think this is the most important skill to have)

i know a guy who finishes most of their problem sets in < 3 hours,
and he considers 5 hours a ridiculously long time to spend on a set
but he is also crazy smart, like IMO medalist smart.

there are plenty of people who do well here and get to relax,
and there are plenty of people who don't,
and i guess you'll find out which one you are when you come
(most of my friends are doing awesome here)

and the other thing
is i know people who are graduating with terrible grades
but they're still getting good jobs after college,
so you gotta realize a bad gpa at caltech,
is not the same as a bad gpa at other places
so don't worry too much

and come to caltech,
because it's awesome and fun