One of the projects ASCIT B.o.D. adopted in 2023 was to review the building accessibility policies for undergraduate students outside of normal operational hours. For context, following the pandemic, building access was understandably limited in order to prioritize the safety and health of the campus communities. Since then, many of the previous building accessibility policies have been reinstated. The following outlines what these policies are, and who to reach out to should you experience difficulties. Additionally, while there are buildings that all students have access to, students also have access to specific (and relevant) buildings based upon the division that their option is in. Thus, the following will outline the building policies for each division as well as campus-wide accessibility.
Applications are now open for the 23rd annual Wolfram Summer School, taking place June 22–July 11, 2025, at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts. The three-week program offers students, researchers, and innovators the opportunity to work on real-world projects alongside leading technologists, researchers, and physicists. Participants will collaborate directly with Stephen Wolfram to shape and refine their project goals.
Caltech claims to strive to “expand human knowledge and benefit society.” A necessary requisite to accomplish this mission is a community that values intellectual diversity. One where peers challenge the preconceived notions of others, and where all can speak freely. We, thus, have a vested interest in protecting free speech. Over the 24 presidential administrations that have come and gone from Washington DC since the Institute’s inception, Caltech has historically remained politically neutral. But this present crisis transcends politics. It challenges the core assumptions that students make when choosing to entrust the Institute with their time, intellect, energy, and safety. Simply put, this is not a moment in history when Caltech can remain silent.
The Graduate Student formal has become the latest casualty of DOGE’s sweeping budget cuts. Fear not, however: the Caltech Rugby Club will be hosting their Annual Ball at the Athenaeum, open to both the blossoming club membership and the wider Graduate Student body. Expect crowd-pleasing music, free flowing food and drink, all set amongst the grandeur of our very own Athenaeum Club.
Spring at Caltech is a season of rapid transformation. Step away for just a few days, and you’ll return to a campus bursting with changes: the once-bare branches are now decorated with colorful flowers. The drastic changes aren’t limited to flora – migrating wildlife also contributes to the seasonal dynamics.
There is a question pulsing quietly beneath the surface of every lab bench, every line of code, every equation scribbled onto a whiteboard: Why are we doing this? Is it for discovery, for prestige, for the betterment of humanity—or something more elusive? At Caltech, we pride ourselves on pushing the boundaries of what is knowable, and we do, no one says the opposite. We decode the stars, manipulate the quantum, edit genes and simulate the brain. But in a world full of complexity, speed, and ambition, can knowledge make us wise? Can science teach us how to live well?
Few Caltech students will take advantage of the opportunity to study abroad during their undergraduate time here. Understandably, undergrads are some of the busiest people you will meet here: classes throughout the day, sports and house activities through the afternoon, problem sets throughout the night and well into the morning, sleep if you can afford it, rinse and repeat. Our four-year plans are often packed; graduating on time is important when your tuition is, to say the least, exorbitant. We are lucky if we have the sheer time management to fit in downtime, much less plan opportunities to exit the Caltech bubble, the boundaries of which are fortified by mediocre public transport and the expense of a car. Throughout my freshman to junior years, I struggled intensely with work-life balance, gradually setting goals to leave campus once a week to control the stress associated with this place.
The Caltech Y regularly organizes Cultural Cuisine Tours across L.A., allowing people to try out new cuisines for a subsidized rate in the presence of a cultural leader, who understands the cuisine and can provide additional information about the food options. Recently, I helped them organize a Cultural Cuisine Tour to Annapurna Grill, specifically to explore South Indian cuisine. And in so doing, I found out just how little people actually knew about South Indian cuisine.
