<p>Ultimately, you don’t have to prove to MIT that you took particular subjects. There is a place on the application where you can provide any information that doesn’t otherwise fit into the application, and listing your self-studied subjects there would be a good choice. You could also choose to make your self-studied material the topic of one of your essays, or provide a supplement to your application that makes use of your self-acquired knowledge.</p>
<p>It’s certainly better to be able to show something for your work, rather than just telling about it, but you can always tell about it if that’s your only choice. MIT will consider everything you choose to put in the application – they don’t require documentation.</p>