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

Caltech (California) has an overall rating of 4.2 out of 5, based on over 1,094 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 113 reviews)); "Campus is beautiful and location can't be beat." ((in 60 reviews)); "Good benefits are often given to employees here" ((in 44 reviews)); "Location is great and your colleagues hail from all over the world." ((in 34 reviews)); "Flexible hours and most of the projects are interesting" ((in 18 reviews))

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

"Low pay and you lab may expect you to work a lot" ((in 53 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 13 reviews)); "Bad culture internally (in terms of staff; things may be different in terms of research / academics)." ((in 7 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

Caltech (California) reviews

4.2

74% would recommend to a friend

(980 total reviews)

Dr. Thomas F. Rosenbaum

77% approve of CEO

70% positive business outlook

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Caltech (California) has an employee rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars, based on 980 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).

Reviews by job title

980 reviews

5.0

Oct 16, 2013

Caltech is a great institution to work for.

Graduate research assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Science-driven, small, lots of funding, opportunities to collaborate with research groups and industry. It is also a very diverse workplace. Great facilities and staff.

Cons

The only thing that I would change about caltech is the gym. They should spend more money on improving the soccer field and the track.

5.0

Oct 9, 2013

Caltech is an intense, but wonderful place to be a graduate student.

Graduate student

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

World-class resources and researchers, and unparalleled access to them. Especially for professors, Caltech makes an effort to give you what you need to be a productive researcher (but they don't want you to be too distracted!)

Cons

Intense environment; poor work-life balance; breaking out of the Caltech bubble is difficult.

4.0

Oct 7, 2013

Best research institute in the world

Postdoctoral scholar

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Caltech has the best research facility, good support staff and library system. You'll work with the most talented colleagues.

Cons

There were a few things that are not so satisfactory compared to other schools I worked at. For example, the activity center is not top of the line, it was small and old. The campus area is also very small

Viewing 874 - 876 of 980 Reviews

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Jobs at Caltech (California)

Administrative Assistant

Administrative Assistant

Administrative Assistant

Administrative Assistant