How hard is it to maintain a good GPA at MIT? All the students are brilliant, so being at the top of your class in order to score consistent A’s or B’s must be hard. Is there anything to compensate for this? What would happen if you couldn’t maintain a good GPA while at MIT? Would you still be able to get into the top grad schools? And what about MIT grad school itself? Would that still be accessible for a student with a low GPA?
A lot of it depends on the courses you’re taking. From my experience, balancing more difficult courses with an easier course is usually a good idea.
To my knowledge, MIT can place you on warning status if you’re well behind, or if you are behind by a CI, or if your GPA is below 3.0/5 (C average) and you might have to withdraw if it continues.
This probably sums it up better. And Mario Kart. http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/mit_academics
So what is the average GPA at MIT? And in the case that someone does have a relatively low GPA, where would they end up after graduation?
Last thing I read is around 4.0-4.2/5 (slightly above a B average, or 3.0/3.2/4).
On the streets.
I’m not sure really, depends on what you mean by low. For example, it might be very difficult to find admission into a Ph.D. program with a 3.0/5.0 GPA at MIT.
Just curious, are you a prospective undergrad or grad student at MIT? Current MIT student? High school student?
@MITer94 I am a prospective MIT undergrad student, but I am a bit intimidated by the prospect that a low GPA in the competitive undergraduate could limit me in graduate possibilities.
Claiten: First year is going to be rough for most students, and, I am told, the second year you learn to take things at a pace that is more comfortable for you, given that you have learned what it takes for you to balance your coursework to maintain your sanity.
I rather like the idea of Mario Kart, ala MITer94, if that is your thing.
@Waiting2exhale true, but first semester is pass/no record, and second semester is (usually) ABC/no record.
MITer94…I would posit that such practices allow students to gain their stride. If a class is wiped from the record, then there is no penalty to you, no?
Many MIT kids experience some serious doubts about whether they truly are worthy enough to have merited entry into the school, and weigh themselves down with that nagging doubt until they become ill and require care. The policy is one which seeks to stop the very bright kids who do fall into that category realize that there will be an adjustment period; all the big fish are now subject to being little fish, and it’s o.k.
You can’t stress yourself about not doing your best beforehand, knowing these practices are in place to buffer the (potential) fall from the stratosphere you inhabited in high school. You get the chance to only show your best, if, all these things being in place, you return sophomore year knowing how to pace yourself, and continue to work hard.
If you no-record a class, then your external transcript won’t show anything.
I feel like an education at MIT is as hard as you make it; one could theoretically graduate in 4 years by taking the easiest possible classes and it probably wouldn’t be super stressful.
At any university, MIT aside, one re-takes a class for which the option of no-record was exercised.
I’m not advising that one do that across the board, with any frequency, or at all. But it exists to lessen the very high stress that MIT kids seem to place on themselves.
The poster wanted to know about keeping his GPA up in such a competitive environment, with an eye toward the future. If one is failing, and does not exercise the no-record option, then “out on the street” might well be the next route.
A lot depends on what graduate opportunities you are looking for. If you are planning on Law School or Medical School, then yes, these schools usually admit primarily on GPA (particularly law school). That will have an impact on what courses you take and how you approach them. MIT does not have any really easy majors for prospective lawyers (that being said, I took a couple of law classes while an MIT undergraduate, and one of them “Law and Public Policy” taught in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning was truly inspirational).
However, if by graduate opportunities, you are looking to go on to graduate school, particularly but not exclusively in STEM fields, then it is not your GPA that will get you in, but your perceived capability for research. To that end, I would put the opportunities available in MIT’s Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) ahead of almost all other schools. It is not unusual to graduate from MIT with your name on one or more papers in serious peer-reviewed journals. If I am applying to grad school, I would much, much, much rather have that, than a slightly higher GPA.
Finally if you are looking for graduate opportunities in Business or Industry, MIT grads are very highly sought, and the jobs are won or lost in the interview, not in the GPA. The recruiters will come to the MIT campus, and that is all that you require.
So in answer to the OP’s original question, I would say that for most fields, it is not a concern at all.