Online, California
Caltech, or the California Institute of Technology, is a prestigious private research university located in Pasadena, California. Renowned for its excellence in science and engineering education, Caltech boasts a rigorous academic environment, cutting-edge research facilities, and notable alumni, including numerous Nobel laureates and prominent scientists.
The California Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Caltech, is a world-renowned private research university located in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1891, Caltech has consistently ranked among the top universities globally, particularly in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
show more
Caltech’s mission revolves around advancing scientific knowledge and educating future leaders in various disciplines. The institute’s rigorous academic environment fosters a culture of curiosity, innovation, and collaboration, attracting some of the brightest minds from around the world.
One of Caltech’s defining features is its small size and low student-to-faculty ratio, which enables personalized attention and mentorship for students. This intimate academic setting allows for close interactions between students and faculty, facilitating deeper engagement in research and learning.
Caltech offers undergraduate and graduate programs across a range of disciplines, including physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, computer science, mathematics, and environmental science. The institute’s curriculum emphasizes hands-on research experiences, enabling students to work alongside faculty on cutting-edge projects from their early undergraduate years.
Caltech is also home to several prominent research centers and facilities, such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is managed for NASA. These facilities provide unique opportunities for interdisciplinary research and collaboration, particularly in space exploration, astrophysics, and planetary science.
The institute’s commitment to excellence in research is evident through its numerous groundbreaking discoveries and contributions to science and technology. Caltech faculty and alumni have been awarded numerous prestigious honors, including Nobel Prizes, Turing Awards, and National Medals of Science.
Beyond academics and research, Caltech offers a vibrant campus life with a wide range of extracurricular activities, clubs, and organizations. Students have access to state-of-the-art facilities, including laboratories, libraries, and recreational amenities, fostering a well-rounded college experience.
In summary, Caltech stands as a beacon of excellence in higher education, renowned for its academic rigor, groundbreaking research, and vibrant community. Through its unwavering commitment to advancing scientific knowledge and educating the next generation of leaders, Caltech continues to shape the future of science and engineering on a global scale.
show less
I had high hopes for the Caltech course, despite the high price tag. However, after a month of having a subject matter expert go through a PowerPoint presentation, I realized that this was all there was to it. There was no real teaching, just explaining. I don’t blame the instructor or the support staff, but the course design and layout were quite ordinary. It was nothing special and definitely not worth the price.
I didn’t have much of a technical background, but I was assured that I was “qualified” to take the course. After two months, I found myself completely lost in the jargon and lack of programming skills. Despite expressing my concerns to various staff members, including the cost and my readiness for the class, I was only offered free courses as compensation.
In summary, I don’t recommend paying for Caltech’s course for DataScience and Business analytics.
Caltech is a place that was built up to take the best scientific minds in the country and push them harder, faster, and further than they’d ever experienced before. It manages this through a couple key points:
There are almost no introductory classes. The ‘normal’ class track for most majors has you taking graduate level courses starting in your sophomore or junior year.
The core curriculum requirement is incredible. Every undergrad at Caltech is required to take courses in analysis, multivariable calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, probability and statistics, classical mechanics, special relativity, electricity and magnetism, waves and optics, thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, general chemistry, physical and organic chemistry, chemistry lab, a second lab class chosen from the likes of nanofabrication labs, physics labs, etc, the biology and biophysics of viruses, and a ‘breadth’ or ‘menu’ course chosen from the likes of introductory astronomy, geology, information science, energy science, etc. Everyone takes all of these. No matter your major. Yes, even the premeds have to pass quantum mechanics.
You take many, many classes. Taking 5-6 courses simultaneously is considered normal. This doesn’t count any ‘small’ course listings like playing for the athletic teams or somesuch. No, we’re talking 5-6 full-blown, hardcore science courses. Taking anything less, even just 4 courses, makes it difficult to remain a full-time student, and difficult to fulfill all the requirements you need in order to graduate on time. On the other hand, many students find themselves taking 7 courses at once in some terms.
The classes move extremely quickly. Some time ago, Caltech moved to a quarter system where each quarter lasts 10 weeks. Rather than simply teach less material than a corresponding semester-long course, the professors adopted the policy of just accelerating the coursework so that each quarter-long course covers a full semester’s worth of material.
I recently took Caltech’s Full Stack Developer online course and it was an extremely frustrating experience for me. First of all, the content of the course was very outdated and irrelevant. It looked like it hadn’t been updated in years. The content did not take into account current industry requirements and trends, making this learning experience unprofitable at all.
The level of the instructors was also very disappointing. He did not have a deep knowledge of the subject and his teaching style was very boring and ineffective. It seemed as if they were just reading the script, without any real understanding or experience. Whenever we students asked questions, they failed to give satisfactory answers. There was no interestingness or interactivity in their teaching method, making the learning process extremely boring.
The practical sessions and assignments were also very simple and non-practical. The level of assignments was so low that there was nothing new to learn from them. They contained no examples of real-world applications or solutions to real problems used in industry. The practical projects were also very basic and did not have any challenging elements.
The biggest problem was that there was no help or guidance after the course. Caltech had made tall promises during the course that they would get us placements in good companies, but none of these came true after the course was completed. The placement team was also not very supportive and did not help us find job opportunities at all.