<p>I know this may sound stupid and shallow ..
but the huge gender gap (30/70) awkward?</p>
<p>I'm a female from GA and I'm planning to apply regular decision .. but I won't get a chance to visit the campus any time soon .. and i'm worried about the social atmosphere of having so many males compared to a small number of females in a relatively small community.</p>
<p>any comments?</p>
<p>Noticeable, but not a problem, at least in my opinion. I might elaborate this post in a bit, but I'm sure you'll either find some very eloquent and complete opinions or you'll get linked to some of the many threads that discuss this.</p>
<p>It's noticeable, but it doesn't make the social life pathological and it's not a serious problem for most people. If you apply and get in, you can come prefrosh weekend and see what you think.</p>
<p>I surprised myself when after a few weeks of being on campus, I didn't even notice the ratio (the "r" word) anymore. I think it's mostly because I fit in the social environment here much better than in any other environment I had ever been in, and so it just didn't really matter that much anymore. In fact, the only people I ever hear talk about the "r" word are admissions people and prefrosh.</p>
<p>And just out of curiosity, lizzardfire, how do you know all this stuff if you're not even a frosh yet?</p>
<p>Well, I wouldn't say that I "know" stuff as much as I've formed an opinion. I've visited Caltech obviously, which of course does not mean nearly as much as actually attending the school, but more importantly I've read many threads on it in my time at CC and I've also talked to probably 10 or 15 current techers about it. While this number is in no way indicative of the entire Caltech population, everyone I've talked to has said nearly the same thing.</p>
<p>I've found it noticeable as a prefrosh (girl) already, not entirely in a healthy way... but I was probably more willing to take advantage of it than I should have been. If you are closer to socially normal you are probably less susceptible to this. (Like lizzardfire's, my opinion is not actually based on experience at Caltech yet--but in some ways this is a bit more striking rather than just less valid.)</p>
<p>My sister noticed some effects/benefits as well, but those were related to the tech school atmosphere as well as the ratio (namely, for instance, that it doesn't take nearly as much effort to be considered normal appearance-wise, whereas in high school there are lots of girls who care a lot about clothes and makeup).</p>
<p>There's nothing wrong with being a flirt! :-D</p>
<p>of course not! ;) I wasn't actually referring just to being a horrible flirt.</p>
<p>lol flirting is good stuff</p>
<p>i was just worried about the atmosphere of being surrounded by a lot of extremely techy/academically amibitious guys .. I just feel that guys would be more openly agressive in their studies towards math and science .. and that might feel kinda weird not having as many girls around .. just to chill .. and complain about the guys and such</p>
<p>its not so much social .. more like .. whether you feel the competition/pressure academically or not</p>
<p>jw .. but do girls kind of have a leg up in the admissions process at all? or do they not count that as "diversity"</p>
<p>
[quote]
jw .. but do girls kind of have a leg up in the admissions process at all? or do they not count that as "diversity"
[/quote]
No, Gott sei Dank.</p>
<p>
[quote]
i was just worried about the atmosphere of being surrounded by a lot of extremely techy/academically amibitious guys .. I just feel that guys would be more openly agressive in their studies towards math and science .. and that might feel kinda weird not having as many girls around .. just to chill .. and complain about the guys and such
[/quote]
I don't think that many people at Tech are at all aggressive in a non-cooperatively competitive sense. However, if you're typically a bit intimidated by techy guys, you would probably be scared of the girls at Tech, too. Of whom there are plenty enough for girltalk =)</p>
<p>lizzardfire: "but more importantly I've read many threads on it in my time at CC"</p>
<p>How long is the Emperor of China's nose?</p>
<p>jenuinex26:
Academics and ambition aren't just for guys.</p>
<p><em>nod</em>. to jenuinex26, i would say there is very little academic aggressiveness/competition. the only aggressiveness that ever comes up is guys who are a little too eager to express (romantic) interest, but that problem can be dealt with, and (for some girls) is not, apparently, even a problem.</p>
<p>Jeremy- Unlike the emperor's nose (which no one was allowed to look upon), the people discussing the ratio are people who have experienced it (like yourself, Ben, Joe Jewell, alleya, and others). I am not trying to say that I am right, I am simply attempting to provide the OP with all information that I am aware of. To be precise, how the ratio affects someone depends upon the person--but there is nothing wrong with compiling data from other people in an attempt to give a general idea.</p>
<p>I have actually talked to a couple of people who have not noticed the ratio. It depends on who you choose to hang out with, I guess.</p>
<p>Also on where you are on the autism spectrum.</p>
<p>I would disagree with Ben, somewhat. I hear more often about guys not explicitly expressing romantic interest, but everyone including the girl, her friends, his friends, and other random people knows what's going on, and they gossip about it extensively. It can be awkward to have going on around you, but not overly so.</p>
<p>SteelPangolin: I know academics and amibition arent just for guys (being a girl myself) .. but I have been to many math team competitions (as a last-minute emergency backup =/ ) ... and its normally the slightly obsessive/typical math-centric guys who have meltdowns when they make a mistake .. or dont get a perfect score</p>
<p>now im not trying to generalize that everybody at caltech would be like that .. i have absolutely no idea what the people are like .. which is why I posted this in the first place</p>
<p>but if the majority of the people are like that ..especially if the male half and especially in such a small community .. I would be creeped out and uncomfortable if there weren't as many girls to balance it out</p>
<p>also .. I'm just use to having a 50/50 balance so that you can have plenty of girls and guys to hang out with just as friends .. without worrying about guys hounding you for a date because they took your friendlines the wrong way</p>
<p>I have heard of people complaining about the ratio... unlike all the prefrosh...</p>
<p>re: Craig's comment, how gossipy is the Caltech social scene? (I realize there is probably some increase in gossip simply due to the fact that everyone lives together, but I'm still curious.)</p>
<p>Meltdowns aren't just for guys either.</p>
<p>To answer the question I think you might be asking, it does seem like a higher fraction of guys fail to develop socially. On the other hand, Techers are very friendly, and in general, the obsessive weirdos tend to either mellow out after a few terms or hide in their rooms and play Warcraft all day.</p>