#SoCaltech: Shrishti Pankaj Kulkarni
“In my first year, I was able to take a student-led computer science class, which was my first introduction to the world of quantum computing. When I became a senior, I realized that I wanted to teach my own class, because I am fascinated by pedagogy and have taken a few courses about the topic to learn more about the advancements and effective techniques in the field. But I realized there was no structure to teach a class as a student within my option, physics. Because of Caltech’s small size, and the physics option’s small size, I knew the head of the option and the executive officer of physics from taking their classes, so I was able to email them and say, ‘Hey, I really want to do this. How can we make it happen?’
“We worked together over the past year to basically establish student-led courses in physics, and they were super supportive. This term, I was able to teach a class with my friend, Mark Gherghetta [fourth-year undergraduate], and that’s been super amazing. The course bridges a gap between learning quantum mechanics and getting into quantum computing research, especially on the experimental side, on campus. Mark and I work in labs that focus on experimental quantum computing, so we wanted to show the reality of that work and establish some fundamentals for students who want to do this kind of research. I think that’s one of the highlights of my experience here—just being able to take everything I’ve learned from research and from classes and make an entirely new course for others, which has also been extremely rewarding and a great way for me to expand on what I previously knew.”
Shrishti Pankaj Kulkarni is graduating from Caltech on June 12, 2026, with a bachelor’s in physics and a minor in computer science. The course that she taught, “Fundamentals of Experimental Quantum Computing,” was part of a pilot seminar of courses, which will later be codified into Ph 13: Student-instructed courses in Physics. As a member of Venerable House, Shristi has also served as internal vice president of the Caltech Y and performs Kathak, a classical Indian dance form, with Caltech Aarya, the classical South Asian dance club on campus. After graduating, she will begin a PhD program at UC Berkeley, continuing her research in atomic physics and quantum computing.
#SoCaltech is an occasional series celebrating the diverse individuals who give Caltech its spirit of excellence, ambition, and ingenuity. Know someone we should profile? Send nominations to magazine@caltech.edu.