California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, California · Private · 987 undergraduates · caltech.edu
Test policy (fall 2027)
Test required
Send an SAT or ACT score
Admit rate
3.8%
of 11,285 applicants
Annual cost (2027-28)
$103,210Est.Estimate
before aid
Your chances and merit aid at California Institute of Technology
See where you stand for admission, how much merit aid you could get, and what you'd pay after it.
We started you at a typical enrolled freshman here. Move the sliders to match you.
Your admission chances
3.8% of applicants admitted
Reach
It admits only 3.8% of applicants, so it's a reach for everyone.
Estimated merit aid
a year
Your cost after merit aid
$103,210
a year in 2027-28, from a $103,210 sticker price
What to do with your 1200
Send your score
This college requires an SAT or ACT score.
Reach, target and likely are a rough guide from your test score and how selective the college is. Admissions also weigh your courses, grades, essays and activities. Merit aid figures are estimates, before any need-based aid.
Admissions
Test policy for fall 2027
Test required
You must send an SAT or ACT score.
- Superscores: it combines your best section scores from different test dates.
- You can type your scores into the application; official reports come later.
Source: Standardized Tests - Undergraduate Admissions · Checked October 16, 2026
Application deadlines
- Nov1Restrictive Early Action · November 1, 2026Not binding, but limits other early applications.
- Jan4Regular Decision · January 4, 2027The standard deadline.
Who gets in
3.8%
of applicants were admitted: 428 of 11,285 for fall 2025.
Restrictive Early Action
Not binding. Apply by 11/1, hear by 12/15.
Wait list
263 students were offered a spot; 1 were later admitted.
Test scores of enrolled freshmen (fall 2025)
The shaded part shows the middle half of enrolled freshmen who sent scores: a quarter scored below it and a quarter above. 78% of them sent SAT scores and 22% sent ACT scores.
ACT composite 35 to 36
How enrolled freshmen scored on the SAT
- 1400 to 1600100%
- 1200 to 13990.5%
- 1000 to 11990%
- 800 to 9990%
- 600 to 7990%
- 400 to 5990%
Source: Common Data Set 2025-2026
Cost and financial aid
The sticker price is what a year costs before any aid. Most students pay less after grants and scholarships.
Sticker price for 2027-28Estimate
$103,210
a year
- Tuition$71,320
- Fees$3,390
- Food and housing$22,880
- Books and supplies$1,490
- Transportation and other$4,130
California Institute of Technology published $99,222 for 2026-27. Its 2027-28 prices aren't out yet.
Source: Common Data Set 2025-2026
What families actually pay
What a year cost on average after grants and scholarships, for freshmen who got federal aid in 2023-24, by family income.
- $0 to $30,000$7,553
- $30,001 to $48,000$11,452
- $48,001 to $75,000$4,144
- $75,001 to $110,000$29,762
- Over $110,000Not reported
Financial aid
100%
of a student's financial need is covered, on average
$66,645
average need-based grant to freshmen, money you don't repay
0%
of freshmen got merit aid without financial need
- FAFSA
- Required for need-based aid. It's the free federal aid form.
- CSS Profile
- Required. It's a second, more detailed aid form some colleges use for their own grants.
- Aid priority date: 3/15
- Send your aid forms by this date to be first in line for the college's grant money.
Source: Common Data Set 2025-2026
AP credit
AP exams that earn credit can replace college courses, so you pay for fewer of them and may graduate sooner.
AP credit
Not given
Source: AP credit policy
After college
Graduate within 6 years
90%
Come back for a second year
97%
Typical earnings
$166,642
a year, 10 years after starting here
- California Institute of Technology$248,772
Median yearly earnings of graduates five years after finishing a bachelor's in this major.
Keep exploring
Figures marked Estimate are our estimates, not numbers the college published. Check each college's own site before you apply. SAT is a trademark of College Board, and ACT is a trademark of ACT, Inc. Sharp is not affiliated with either, or with California Institute of Technology. The California Institute of Technology logo is a trademark of the college.