Parent and Family Engagement
Welcoming a new class of undergraduates to Caltech is one of my greatest honors as dean. Welcoming you—their caregivers and supporters—to this community is one of my greatest pleasures. You have nurtured their talent, encouraged their perseverance, and honored their ambitions. You should feel a deep sense of pride as they begin their college journey.
The Caltech undergraduate experience is unique, and it attracts a unique set of students. Our students are attracted to challenge but also committed to the kinds of collaboration and discovery that can only happen on a campus of this size. The Undergraduate Deans' Office exists to support students throughout their careers at Caltech, from their first weeks navigating the Core curriculum, to their first summer research fellowship or internship, and graduation. We work with all our partner offices, including the Office of Student Experience, Student Wellness Services, Caltech Accessibility Services for Students, the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Outreach, and the Caltech Center for Inclusion and Diversity, to ensure that every student has the resources they need to realize their goals.
Families are key partners in this work. College represents a major transition, not only in the lives of your students, but for everyone who has helped them arrive at this point. These years will see adolescents become young adults, maturing in independence, judgment, and resiliency. Your support is crucial to this process. Even as students form new friendships and pursue new paths, the foundations of care and encouragement that have gotten them to this point remain vital.
Each new class changes Caltech, enriching our community in unexpected ways. You are now a part of that community, too, and we look forward to celebrating the accomplishments, creativity, and dynamism of the Class of 2028 with you in the years to come.
Welcome to the Caltech Family! We are pleased to have your student join Caltech, and we invite you and your family into our close-knit, collaborative community, which includes our students, faculty, postdocs, staff, and alumni.
Supporting your student in their educational journey as they navigate the transition to college and launch their professional journey at Caltech and beyond is a priority. The long-term success and continued development of our students is a shared commitment, and together, we can help to ensure your student realizes their ambitions.
There is so much that happens at Caltech! Throughout their time at Caltech, your student will have access to the world's leading scientists and engineers across fields, the opportunity to explore their passions and interests on campus—and beyond, and benefit from the support of an expansive network of peers, mentors, and professionals. Our goal is to help bring you into this community. We will provide you with opportunities and resources to learn about the Caltech Student Experience and to experience the academic journey, the research discoveries, and unique traditions that will be part of your student's journey. We invite you to reach out, to connect, and to let us know how we can support you and how we can most effectively work together to ensure the success of your student.
Parent and Family Engagement is new at Caltech, and we look forward to building programs and community with you as we grow this initiative and develop our work. Stay tuned to learn more about what we are planning and what we can offer the Caltech family! In the meantime, if there is anything we can do to support you, please contact us at familyprograms@caltech.edu.
Stay Connected
One special program at Caltech that is offered by our Dining team is the birthday cake tradition. Dining will bake your students a cake and deliver it to them. You can order one here.
The Emergency Preparedness and Business Continuity Program at Caltech aims to create a disaster resilient Institute by providing education in emergency procedures and personal preparedness as well as facilitating the development of continuity plans within all Divisions and Departments on campus.
The goal of this website is to provide ongoing information about emergency and continuity planning initiatives on campus, upcoming training opportunities and act as a repository of key resources, templates and tools.
Thank you for taking the time to prepare now for an emergency. Our level of preparedness now will dictate how quickly and comfortably we can recover after a disaster strikes.
Questions? Please email: emergencypreparedness@caltech.edu
Once in college, parents and guardians have no inherent rights to access their child's academic records. This includes enrollment and grades. If contacted, please note that Institute administrators and faculty will not be able to discuss a student's academics. If a parent or guardian has specific questions about a student's grades or records, they should contact the student. For more information on FERPA, and legal exceptions, click here.
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