Is Caltech mostly for geniuses who want to do super nerdy research?
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Anonymous
This is tough to answer. What is 'normal' to you? Back in the day, physics, computers, comic books, anime club, D&D was uber-nerdy. Somewhere down the line Comic-Con is a cultural event, people have actually heard of Studio Ghibli, and FAANG is a thing. I can't speak specifically to the culture of Caltech, but generally 'tech' schools are going to skew in a technical direction. Most certainly there are students with broader interests, but they chose to pursue a highly technical school with a narrower set of curricular options. That's going to tend to be a particular type of student. I don't think it's a question of 'normal' as that is normal to that type of student. Maybe because I was never fashionable or popular in high school, but I don't understand how that really signals anything meaningful. Caltech's sweet spot is clearly cutting-edge research opportunities in a small tight-knit environment of like-minded students. And because the research is cutting-edge, I suppose by definition it would qualify as 'super-nerdy' as well as pretty immersive. I think the question for your DC is whether they want to be in that kind of environment. For my own, we toured MIT and did some research. While she is interested in STEM, she also loves humanities topics and art/music. She has realized she wants an environment where she may very well have roommates that are art history, sociology, or musicology majors versus one where everyone is likely CS or engineering. Some students are STEM through and through and want to be immersed (or will be very comfortable) in that environment. Maybe look at what kind of environment she wants or would be comfortable in and recognize, as noted earlier, Caltech is going to at the far end of the continuum (and so is MIT) |
Anonymous
| Both Cal Tech and MIT seem like dreadful college experiences. Trade schools basically. I mean they offer no traditional college experiences. |
Anonymous
They aren't. Just things stupid posters say. |
Anonymous
| Cal Tech is not even ranked in the Top 3 for Engineering. Just sayin. |
Anonymous
Please share the information and personal knowledge you have to form this opinion about these two schools. |
Anonymous
So dumb. There exists a life outside of campuses and Boston/Pasadena (LA) are better than any hicktown USA in terms of experience opportunities. And for most MIT/Caltech grads it's a choice between a $100K job or a $250K one and not having a job or being unemployed like your typical college grad. |
Anonymous
Lol at someone that says “hicktown”. |
Anonymous
Sounds like you don’t really know any of the schools. It’s only dreadful if you’re too dumb for them which sounds like you’re. BTW, it’s Caltech. |
Anonymous
|
BTW, it’s Caltech.
Who cares. |
Anonymous
| Cal Berkeley > CalTech |
Anonymous
| Yes. A professor that came to MIT from CalTech said it was the only time he saw books with bunny ears on them for quantum physics. |
Anonymous
Says who? I was an athlete (MIT protects sports hours between 5 and 7pm- no academic study hours can happen) Also 45% of the kids are in the Greek system. Many of whom live in Boston. Plus most people do research in undergrad. So it's not like we are in basements studying 24/7 |
Anonymous
But that’s what they want people to believe, a narrative that their dumb kids are not intellectually inferior, but just didn’t want to work on it. A bunch of losers. |
Anonymous
Such a stupid, troll statement. I'm sure you have comprehensive knowledge of the thousands of choices made by students you've never met. MIT might well win the cross-admit battle with Caltech, but what does that have to do with OP's question? |
Anonymous
If you don't know that the two schools are rivals, you really don't know much about them. |