There's a good reason why a movie based on Caltech students was called Real Genius. After all, the average Caltech student can discuss Stephen Hawkings' books, recite pi to ten decimals, and talk about Schroedinger's cat-for fun. "Caltech is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities, and easily one of the best places to study engineering, science, and math. If you are unfamiliar with Caltech, academically speaking, we are MIT on the west coast, and professionals are aware of this and treat us accordingly," explains Ryan, a freshman. Marybeth, a physics major, discusses the perks of academic life at Caltech: "Students collaborate on homework and there is no competition, which is wonderful. No spiting, no envy. We are smart enough to realize that there's no point. Everyone does their best. The work is so hard it simply cannot be completed alone."