College dataData from U.S. Dept of EducationUpdated May 2026 · 4 min read
Data: 2026-05 Next refresh: Nov 2026

California Institute of Technology: Cost, Graduate Salary, Acceptance Rate and Return on Investment

California Institute of Technology is a private nonprofit college in Pasadena, CA. Students pay about $16,075 a year in net price, and the median graduate earns $128,566 ten years after enrolling. By our Degree-ROI measure the degree pays back in about 0.8 years and adds $754,360 over a decade, ranking it #3 of 918 (top 1%) by value added.

Avg net price / yr
$16,075
Median salary (10 yrs)
$128,566
10-yr value added
$754,360
Acceptance rate
2.6%

What is California Institute of Technology's acceptance rate?

California Institute of Technology has an acceptance rate of 2.6%, which makes it highly selective. It is a private nonprofit institution in Pasadena, CA enrolling about 987 students, with a 93.8% graduation rate.

How much does California Institute of Technology cost?

California Institute of Technology costs about $16,075 per year in average net price, what a typical student actually pays after grants and scholarships. Over four years, including typical borrowing, that totals roughly $64,300. Published sticker cost of attendance is $86,886 per year.

How much do California Institute of Technology graduates earn?

Ten years after enrolling, the median California Institute of Technology student earns $128,566 per year. That is $81,866 more than the $46,700 that the typical worker with only a high-school diploma earns.

Is California Institute of Technology worth it? Degree ROI and payback period

California Institute of Technology pays back its roughly $64,300 cost in about 0.8 years, then keeps returning the earnings premium. Over the first decade the degree adds about $754,360 net of cost, a 12.73x return on the money invested. That ranks it #3 of 918 (top 1%) by value added. Its top-tier value is driven mainly by strong graduate earnings and a high graduation rate.

Top 10% value

California Institute of Technology graduation rate and student debt

93.8% of California Institute of Technology students complete their degree.

California Institute of Technology by the numbers (vs the typical college)

How California Institute of Technology compares to the median four-year college in our snapshot. Percentile is its rank among the 918 colleges that report both earnings and cost (higher is better).

MetricThis schoolMedian collegePercentile
Avg net price / yr$16,075$20,299cheaper than 70%
Median earnings (10 yrs)$128,566$54,76899th
Graduation rate93.8%57.0%98th
Acceptance rate2.6%75.7%more selective than 100%
10-yr value added$754,360-$28,192100th
ROI multiple (per $1)12.73x0.73x100th
Payback period0.8 yrs8.8 yrsfaster than 100%
How we compute Degree value-add & ROI. Investment basis = average net price × 4 years + median debt (net price preferred; published sticker cost used as a fallback). Earnings premium = median earnings 10 years after entry minus the $46,700 typical earnings of a worker with only a high-school diploma (BLS Current Population Survey, median annual earnings for workers with a high-school diploma and no college (~$899/week, 2023)). Degree value-add = premium × 10 years minus total cost, the net return of the degree itself over a high-school career (it can be negative). ROI multiple = 10-year premium ÷ cost. Payback = cost ÷ annual premium. Ranked by value-add among the 918 four-year colleges in this snapshot that report both earnings and cost; 226 of them do not pay back at ten years. Missing values are excluded, never estimated.
Open data: these figures come from the public College Scorecard (public domain). Our computed Degree value-add, ROI multiple, and payback are free to cite/reuse under CC-BY 4.0.

Frequently asked

Is California Institute of Technology worth the cost compared to other colleges?

By value added net of cost, California Institute of Technology ranks #3 of 918 (top 1%) of the 918 four-year colleges we rank, and returns about 12.73x the money invested over a decade.

Is California Institute of Technology expensive compared to other colleges?

Its $16,075 average net price is below the $20,299 median for the colleges in this snapshot, making it cheaper than 70% of them.

Do California Institute of Technology graduates earn more than average?

Median earnings of $128,566 ten years out are above the $54,768 median, higher than 99% of the colleges here.

How hard is it to get into California Institute of Technology compared to other colleges?

Its 2.6% acceptance rate is below the 75.7% median, making it more selective than 100% of the colleges in the snapshot.

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