<p>From my personal experience, Caltech has much less of a name-recognition wow-factor with a lot of people than do other schools like MIT or the Ivies. Mass perception hasn’t caught up with media portrayal, it seems, as Caltech actually does get a bit of attention in the entertainment world. I don’t remember many examples, but I am often surprised at references to Caltech in movies and so forth. Most recently I saw an episode of Law & Order: SVU from the latest season where a character references Caltech along with MIT and, I think, Harvard. I guess people just don’t pay attention.</p>
<p>I’m not sure why Caltech isn’t more of a cliche smartypants school. Perhaps the community there doesn’t work as hard to be perceived as elite and exclusive? (A current student’s input would be helpful.) In any case, being less (in)famous makes Caltech more appealing.</p>