Massachusetts Institute of Technology Top Questions

Professors are always available during weekly office hours, and they are always willing to clarify a point from lecture, discuss their research, or answer some questions about the problem set. That being said, I've been to office hours only once. I often find it hard to fit office hours into my schedule, and my questions are usually late at night right before a due date. Conversations around campus always begin Where do you live? and then What is your major? From there, they generally veer off into personal interests, current technology issues not immediately related to coursework, or a movie that someone saw recently. Oftentimes, we spend so much time with classmates, working on problem sets, that they become close friends, and remain a part of our lives in a non-academic setting.

Yes and no - Most of the large freshman lecture classes - not at all, but any humanities class or even as you get higher up in your classes - yes. Um my least favorite class last semester was my writing class - it was taught really well but I just hating writing papers. So far my favorite class has been 3.091 - Chemistry because the professor was really cool and it was pretty easy. Students study every single night. you have to do A LOT of work here to survive, but it's definitely doable. Class participation is common in smaller classes like humanities or higher level classes - not so much in large lecture classes. All conversations almost always revert to something to do with physics or politics or math or something - its MIT what do you expect? Students always strive to do their best, but everyone will help everyone out to excel and no one tries to put someone else down for their own gain. And if they do, they don't have a lot of friends. 3.091 was pretty unique just because the professor was crazy and so cool. I have no clue what major I want to be yet which is a little scary. Professors are really willing to help you outside of class if you want to and also if you take the initiative. I mean students and professors don't really talk outside of class about normal things unless it's a professor from a higher level class that doesn't have a lot of people in it. But there are a lot of like "meet the professors dinners" where you can talk to your professors on a more informal level. MIT's academic requirements are pretty rough but definitely doable. Some majors are lighter than others, but all could definitely be done. You can finish every single major by taking exactly 4 classes a term which is the normal load. For the most part education is geared towards learning for its own sake.

Well, to talk about MIT is to talk about academics firstly. To be a student here is to know that you are surrounded by some of the best and the brightest of the country. The guy sitting next to you in 5.12 could be discover the new equivalent of penicillin or the girl next to you in 8.02 could finally discover the graviton. Classes here are very difficult, and homework is heavy. Students will work together in groups mostly to try and get all their problem sets done on time, but problem sets plus exams plus extracurricular activities can be overwhelming. In the first few classes students will take the lectures will be huge, and the chances that the professor knows your name is very low. In addition to classes here, though, is the recitation. Most lectures have recitations, which are smaller classes (usually of somewhere between 10 and 25 people) with a graduate student or upperclassmen. This is the environment where your teacher can learn your name, and where your questions can be answered on a personal basis. Outside of the recitations all the recitation leaders and professors have office hours where you can get one-on-one with the instructor. Overall, if you plan on coming to MIT plan on a huge workload, but also be prepared for fellow students who are willing to help, and love to talk about whatever they are passionate about when they are relaxing from p-setting. (You will also learn that all the classes here are organized by numbers; 5.12 is Organic Chemistry I, 8.02 is Physics II.)

Students study a lot, and there are huge numbers of intellectual conversations outside of class. Many students take more classes at any given time than they needed to, so that adds to the perception that MIT is hard. Some classes are very good, and some professors are very nice and interesting, but it varies. The best thing about academics at MIT is that your professors are very, very smart. MIT's professors can answer any topic about their class as thoroughly and correctly as any human being on the planet. My friends in other colleges sometimes complain that their professors are stupid and unqualified, trying to teach things they don't understand themselves. This is never the case at MIT, these professors are knowledgeable in the extreme.

It's hard. BUT it's doable. People have a preconception that only geniuses can do an MIT work load. That's not so. You must, however, be excited about working and learning enough to sacrifice the weekdays to do just that. Classes are decently sized and professors for the most part want to know your name and who you are. Frequently the TA's can have difficulty speaking English.

Some professors know my name, and most try. Class participation is not that common, but when people do contribute, we get spirited discussions.

Big lecture classes during freshman year, then smaller. No grad students teaching classes. Even recitations are often taught by professors (my physics recitation was taught by a Nobel laureate!). MIT is a very unique place where the smartest students I've ever met are always trying to solve new problems. Lunch conversations turn to theoretical physics debates, then to a recent Red Sox game, and finally to new movies. Students are social, with wide interests that span the academic to the popular.

Yes!! i become friends with most of my professors...and if my professors don't know my name, it's because i abuse my TA's instead and become real good friends with them! favorite: 15.279, it's such a fun class, and you learn plenty of things that you know will be applicable in your future. Oh, and Lori Breslow (the prof) is AMAZINGG!! least favorite: 7.012 bio sucks. a lot. like, a really really lot! we study a lot. more than you would think. on an average night, i do ~5 solid hours of homework. umm, class participation is usually low when unnecessary. Students are competitive with themselves and their own personal standards, but since there is no ranking, everybody wants eachother to succeed and do well. Most people survive MIT because of their friends helping them. most interesting class: "Streetfighting Mathematics" ...the name says it all

Everyone talks about academics at MIT being a "sink or swim" sort of atmosphere. That DOESN'T mean that if you're clueless about physics you're going to drown (I didn't get to take physics in high school, so I feared that would be me!). The key to academic success at MIT is wanting to succeed. There is a huge support structure in place for every department and every class, so all you have to do is ask for help and you will get it. From free tutoring, to extra study sessions, and more open office hours with Professors and Teaching Assistants than you can count, the only way to consistently fail your classes is to not care. Nobody is going to watch over your shoulder 24/7 to make sure you're doing your work. You are the engineer of your own success, and you will do just as well as you want to. In my major, I can count four professors who remember my name. One of them however, is internationally famous and has written highly acclaimed textbooks in his field. Just about all professor host open office hours for questions, but I never went to them.

Certain professors learn your name even in a large class. Others don't bother even in small classes. My favorite class so far has been artificial intelligence (known as 6.034 here). Lectures were interesting - the professor was a great teacher. I talked to him after finals and started doing some research in his lab group.