Why has the six-year graduation rate at CalTech been trending upwards?

Just three years ago, the six-year graduation rate at CalTech was 87%. Now, it’s 93% which brings this USNWR criterion more in-line with that of other highly-ranked universities. Recent alumni and current undergraduate students, please weigh in about whether this increase is the result of a concerted effort by the administration to ease up a bit, or if it’s just a statistical aberration… My son is a prospective student and appears well-qualified for admission, but I worry about CalTech’s famously brutal academic reputation and lack of social interaction.

I can’t speak for the social interaction aspect outside of school work, but when I went to CalTech’s seminar in my state they seemed to promote cooperation in studies. Most homework assignments were encouraged to be completed in groups, and all tests were take-home. I don’t know if this is a recent implementation, but this environment would definitely bring graduation rates up.

One guess is that the economy is improving (ever so slowly…) and people don’t need to protect themselves as much. It could also be a fluctuation.