The California Institute of Technology has 971 undergraduates — not per year, but in total, across four years, on a 124-acre campus in Pasadena, California. With 1,398 graduate students and 323 faculty, the whole institute is 2,369 people at a 3:1 ratio[1]. Admission is arithmetic, not a funnel: 13,856 applications and 356 offers in the last cycle published in full[2]. And the money is unusual: one rate for everyone, and need-based aid that is capped for foreign citizens.
Location
California, United States
Establishment year
1891
Students
2,401
International students
683
Female students
36%
Acceptance rate
3%
Place in ratings
There's not enough data to display the dynamics of this rating.
🔬 Research is the default undergraduate experience, not a privilege you compete for — about 91% take part
The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships pay for a supervised summer project[1]. Elsewhere you lobby for a lab.
💵 A PhD offer is a funded offer whatever your passport: tuition, fees and a 50,000 USD stipend from September 2026
It comes as a fellowship or an assistantship; the stipend is up from 48,244 USD in 2025-26[5].
🎓 Need-based aid for internationals is real money: the average award was 82,706 USD
63 international undergraduates held aid at that average in the latest Common Data Set[2].
🛰 Instruments, not only papers: the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Seismological Laboratory, Palomar Observatory
Caltech has run JPL for NASA since 1958; Keck is shared with the University of California. But the JPL contract ends 30 September 2028 and the next goes to competitive bid.
Where Caltech falls short
📉 A 2.57% admit rate means Caltech belongs on a list, not at the centre of one
That rate is for Fall 2024 entry; the next cycle admitted 428 students from 23 countries with no application total published[7].
💰 No merit scholarships exist, and international admission is need-aware
Americans are reviewed need-blind; for foreign applicants Caltech says the aid pool is limited and need may factor into the decision[3].
⏳ Skip the aid application in year one and you are locked out of Caltech aid for the whole degree
Only entering first-years may apply; those who do not, or are refused, stay ineligible, bar narrow exceptions for Canadians and Mexicans[8].
📚 Six divisions and 26 undergraduate options, essentially all science and engineering
There is no law school, no business school and no medical school[9] — if your interests may shift that way, the pivot happens elsewhere.
Six divisions, three terms and one Core
Caltech runs three ten-week terms rather than two semesters. Every undergraduate takes the same Core: physics, chemistry, mathematics, biology and computer science, two first-year humanities courses, 81 further humanities units, a lab and a writing requirement[10]. Its first two terms are graded pass or fail. Options — Caltech's word for majors — number 26 undergraduate and 31 graduate[9]. Undergraduates live in eight Houses, under an Honor Code that makes unproctored take-home exams workable[11].
One rate applies to everyone; there is no international band. The published cost of attendance doubles as your proof of funds: US immigration sets no national figure, and the I-20 uses the school's own budget. The nine-month undergraduate budget for 2026-27[4]:
Item
2026-27 academic year
Tuition
68,574 USD
Mandatory fees
2,655 USD
Housing
12,711 USD
Food
9,285 USD
Books and supplies
1,428 USD
Personal expenses
3,969 USD
Total
98,622 USD
Academic calendar
Quarters
Financial Aid
Yes
Bachelor
56,364USD/year
Master
54,570USD/year
Doctorate
54,570USD/year
Outside it: health insurance at 5,049 USD in 2025-26 unless waived[12], a one-time 600 USD orientation fee and a refundable 100 USD deposit. Graduate living costs run 31,774-44,554 USD a year by housing type[5], covered by the package for funded PhD students.
Room and board
on campus18,606USD/year
off campus17,784USD/year
Other expenses
on campus2,700USD/year
off campus4,860USD/year
A tiny intake and how it is filled
Undergraduate review is holistic but literal about preparation: calculus, chemistry and physics are expected, and Caltech names what it reads — Class X and XII state board or CBSE results, IB Higher Level Mathematics, A-level Mathematics[3]. No interview; the SAT or ACT is required again[13].
Have your school send official transcripts for grades 9 to 11 — the school submits them, not you[14].
Book the SAT or ACT to finish by 30 November 2026 (early) or 31 December 2026 (regular).
Sit IELTS, TOEFL or Duolingo unless you were taught in English; the result must predate the deadline.
Line up two recommendation letters: one STEM teacher at calculus level or above, one from humanities.
Apply with the 85 USD fee, or request the waiver if it is a genuine hardship[15].
If you need money, file the International Student Financial Aid Application and CSS Profile now — there is no later entry point[8].
Reply by 1 May 2027, then pay the 350 USD SEVIS fee and the 185 USD visa fee and book the interview.
Graduate admission belongs to the options, not to a central office.
Choose one option: only one graduate application per cycle[16].
Check that option's deadline and GRE policy; the institute-wide requirement went in 2020.
Name the groups you want to join: research fit carries the file.
Prepare transcripts, a statement of purpose and letters; review is holistic, with no GPA cutoff.
Funding arrives with the offer for doctoral study, not as a separate contest.
CALE, the careers service, covers students, postdocs and alumni[18]. Of 209 tracked class-of-2023 graduates, 43% went to graduate school and 44% into full-time work, with a median base salary band of 110,000-119,000 USD[19].
Beyond campus the rules are federal. On an F-1 you may work 20 hours a week on campus in term and full time in official breaks; off-campus work is closed in year one. Optional Practical Training then gives 12 months, plus 24 for STEM graduates with an E-Verify employer. Diarise one change: from 15 September 2026 a DHS rule ends open-ended duration of status — admission is fixed to your I-20 for up to four years, the departure window drops to 30 days, and extensions need Form I-539. A five-year PhD will need one mid-degree.
For applicants outside the United States
Caltech wants a transcript sent by a school official and publishes no WES or ECE requirement — ask before paying for one. Budget instead for certified English translations of your diploma and transcripts, with names spelled as in your passport; Indian applicants need Class X and XII mark sheets. For WAEC or Philippine senior high school results Caltech publishes no subject guidance — email admissions rather than assume a mapping. Pay fees by card in US dollars; check your international limit before deadline week. Since June 2025 F-1 applicants must set social-media accounts to public for consular vetting[20], and a statutory 250 USD Visa Integrity Fee may apply too[21].
Does Caltech publish graduate admission statistics?
No institute-wide applicant or admit figures are published; ask the option you are targeting.
Do international students pay more than Americans?
No, the price is identical for everyone; only aid eligibility differs.
What happens to a near-perfect SAT or ACT section score?
From the Fall 2027 cycle, sections of SAT 780-800 or ACT 35-36 reach the committee as a band, as do SAT 750-770 and ACT 33-34; composites never do[22].
When do I have to choose my major?
Caltech students settle on an option near the end of the first year.
What is the Integrated Core?
A pilot from Fall 2025 covering the same first-year material through cross-disciplinary courses, open to roughly 10% of the intake[23].
Caltech suits a narrow profile
Choose Caltech when your subject is science, mathematics or engineering; when you want a research group in year one; when you are aiming at a funded PhD, where citizenship changes nothing; or when your family can pay 98,622 USD a year or document real need.
