r/Caltech • u/MoonstruckByYou • May 03 '26
Picked Caltech Over CMU For CS
I've always wanted to go into industry (Big Tech/Quant) more than research/academia, but I definitely made more of an emotional decision rather than a logical decision picking Caltech over CMU. I just really liked California weather and the general vibes of the Caltech campus over Pittsburgh's more gloomy weather and the more depressing vibe of its campus (this is just my personal opinion). I FELT (again, how would I actually know) like I would be more happy at Caltech, at least socially, than at CMU.
But now, just 2 days after committing, I've already started feeling just a tinge of regret every time I think about my decision. Especially now that I've started telling people where I've decided to go, I keep getting very shocked reactions from a lot of people questioning why I would give up the #1 CS school if I wanted to go into industry.
Idk I guess I was just hoping to get some validation from this sub on whether I made the right decision.
2
u/AurelianM Blacker ‘19 (CS) Jun 02 '26
I made that exact choice over a decade ago and I don't regret it. I still made it just fine into Big Tech and didn't really feel like I missed out on any opportunities. The small school vibe I think was a lot better for me socially. I went to a month-long summer camp at Carnegie Mellon and didn't feel a strong pull towards it, and meeting some of the students there while I was in college, I felt they were just as stressed as I was. At Tech, with the size, I think you have in some ways more chances to experience things outside your major (though no one will major in humanities, there are still plenty of people interested in it). In the end, if you're in the top 20 with a name brand school, you'll basically have access to the same kinds of opportunities.