Is Caltech (California) a good company to work for?

Caltech (California) has an overall rating of 4.2 out of 5, based on over 1,093 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has increased by 2% over the last 12 months. 74% of employees would recommend working at Caltech (California) to a friend and 70% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Caltech (California) have been left by employees working as Teaching Assistant , PhD Student and Researcher .

Does Caltech (California) pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Caltech (California) employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.8 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Caltech (California). This rating has improved by 4% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Caltech (California)?

74% of Caltech (California) employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Caltech (California) 3.8 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.0 for culture and values and 4.1 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Caltech (California)?

Graduate Student (71) , Postdoctoral Fellow (63) , Graduate Research Assistant (56) , Postdoctoral Scholar (44) , PhD Student (42) , PhD Graduate Student (40) , Research Assistant (35) , Postdoctoral Researcher (27) , Researcher (21) , Research Scientist (17) , Teaching Assistant (16) , Administrative Assistant (15) , Research Technician (15) , Postdoctoral Research Associate (13) , Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow (13)

What are the pros of working at Caltech (California) according to real employee reviews?

"People are smart and nice." ((in 109 reviews)); "Campus is beautiful and location can't be beat." ((in 62 reviews)); "Good benefits are often given to employees here" ((in 41 reviews)); "Location is great and your colleagues hail from all over the world." ((in 33 reviews)); "Nice Staff" ((in 17 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Caltech (California) according to real employee reviews?

"Low salary and lots of work" ((in 37 reviews)); "bad work life balance at" ((in 19 reviews)); "Siloed departments and lack of cohesive management" ((in 14 reviews)); "Bad culture internally (in terms of staff; things may be different in terms of research / academics)." ((in 7 reviews)); "Limited diversity." ((in 6 reviews))

What are employees saying about Caltech (California) layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Caltech (California) layoffs and their outlook for job security at Caltech (California) in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Caltech (California) locations?

Pasadena , Los Angeles , Baton Rouge , Livingston , Chesterfield , Charlotte , Livingston , Big Pine , Claremont , Glendale , Glendora , Montrose , South Pasadena , Moreno Valley , Rancho Cordova , Palomar Mountain , San Diego , Berkeley , Redwood City , Sausalito , San Jose , San Luis Obispo , Richland , Boston , Pasadena

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Caltech (California)

Caltech (California) reviews

4.2

74% would recommend to a friend

(979 total reviews)

Dr. Thomas F. Rosenbaum

77% approve of CEO

70% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.1

Diversity & inclusion

4.1

Career opportunities

4.0

Culture & values

3.8

Work/Life balance

3.8

Senior management

3.8

Compensation and benefits

Caltech (California) has an employee rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars, based on 979 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The Caltech (California) employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Education industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

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Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

979 reviews

4.0

Mar 5, 2015

Graduate student in Aeronautics

Graduate student in aeronautics

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

I completed my PhD and this is pretty much the top Aerospace program in the world, so it's hard to complain about that. It has done well for me career wise. The pay was adequate (no one gets rich off grad school, but I was paid enough to meet my expenses and live reasonably.)

Cons

It's a small place, so if there are personal or other conflicts, it's hard to disappear or blend in. Most classes are not offered frequently enough due to the small size of the department and the large number of professors who have time release for one reason or another.

2.0

Mar 2, 2015

Old guard Pasadena doing modern science.

Administrative assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good salaries, many nice and helpful people. Pretty campus, flexible schedules and decent benefits. Divisions are all different and have unique cultures.

Cons

Research dominates and staff is treated like second class citizens. Systemic morale and ethics issues. Management and HR are not interested in changing or improving the workplace.

3.0

Feb 17, 2015

Decent entry level position to get job experience for your resume.

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Employee discounts, holiday pay, and job security

Cons

No room for growth, entitlement mentality, no support from upper management, and often times you will find yourself doing tasks that are outside the scope of your position.

Viewing 826 - 828 of 979 Reviews

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Graduate student in Aeronautics

Old guard Pasadena doing modern science.

Decent entry level position to get job experience for your resume.

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