p.s. on Caltech. -- Caltech offers a unique experience in many ways. I have never regretted the experience or the private school tuition -- there was definite value added and unique opportunities for students with a science/math/engineering inclination. However, when I went there, the drop out rate was about 30%, and some of those kids crashed and burned pretty hard.
According to the Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Institute_of_Technology"The four-year graduation rate is 80.6% and the six-year rate is 88%, which is low compared to most leading U.S. universities, but substantially higher than it was in the 1960s and 70s. Students majoring in STEM fields traditionally have graduation rates below 70%."
Someone who starts out at Harvard majoring in physics but finds that he/she can't handle it can shift his/her major to many other subjects, including the social sciences and humanities. A Caltech student might decide to transfer to a less science-focused school. It would be good to know how many Caltech "drop-outs" successfully complete their bachelor's degrees somewhere else.
