humanities (not arts) at MIT and in MIT culture

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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<p>Okay, I know you think this has been done to death. Yes, I know MIT has great econ, poli sci, philosophy, linguistics, and Victorian literature (none of which I'm that interested in). I know opportunities for theater, music, and arts involvement abound, perhaps more than at many other schools because most people aren't at MIT solely to study those things. But I'm wondering more about how the humanities and social sciences fare in the student culture--do MIT students have serious interests in these subjects, and can you find some, at least, that like to talk about them outside of those irritating required HASS classes?</p>

<p>I'm definitely a math/science person. Wherever I go, I'll probably end up majoring in math, and taking a bunch of physics, bio or neuroscience classes along with that. But I also have serious, sustained interest in creative writing, psychology, and black history (this is the one I think I'd have the biggest issue with at MIT). The student culture at MIT, in my admittedly limited view, seems much more attractive than many of the other top schools--hacks, "mens et manus," a relative lack of pretension (though, of course, being at MIT engenders its own kind of pretension). I was at a math camp this summer, and I really liked having lots of people to talk math with all the time, but I also found that the non-science interaction was pretty superficial, and I missed having writer friends and history buffs to talk with too. </p>

<p>I think I'd be perfectly happy at MIT, like at math camp, but I might unwittingly neglect the writerly/history side of me, and I might get sick of it, I'm not sure.</p>

<p>Any thoughts?</p>

<p>If it helps, other schools I am applying to are Princeton (worried about the snob factor), Stanford, Cornell, UChicago (not thrilled with the lack of engineering, but like the intellectual part), Swarthmore, Rice, Smith, and McGill. It's sort of a long list already, which is why I want to make an informed decision on whether to apply to MIT, and not just apply and see if I even have this happy dilemma.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

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<p>Any advice?</p>

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<p>you'd be pretty surprised how catholic most students' interests are here.</p>

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<p>You might have to make a little more effort than at other top schools, and to a certain extent it would depend on where you lived, but yes, you can find writers and history buffs at MIT, and you can find people knowledgeable about black history.</p>

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<p>Arts play a pretty big role in some of the social circles here at MIT. Personally, I really enjoy creative writing and music, and have found no problem find people- both socially and academically- who share that interest. Just for perspective, of the people I live with, I'd say about 40% are involved in some sort of organized art-type student group.</p>

<p>You might not find a ton of pure "writer friends and history buffs" here, but that most people are like you, and enjoy getting away from the math and science at times.</p>

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<p>I would agree. I found heaps of MIT students with serious Arts and Literature interests. When I visited the campus, prior to enrolling, I was concerned about the same things, and my fears were misplaced.</p>

<p>Black history is trickier definitely. Certainly academically, there are few offerings (a few courses, but nothing really special). Though if this is a real interest of yours, as an MIT student you are eligible to cross-register for courses in Harvard's department of African and African American Studies. This is indeed precisely what the cross-reg program was designed for, to allow student to explore disciplines at one institution not well covered at the other and outside of their major field of study. I had a colleague at MIT who took Ancient Gaelic at Harvard as he wanted to read the original of King Lear. It happens.</p>

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<p>Wait, the original King Lear was written in Gaelic? I highly doubt that that's true, as I don't think Shakespeare wrote any plays in Gaelic. Certainly the First Folio is not written in Gaelic.</p>

<p>I think what you meant to say is that some of the historical sources that Shakespeare used to write King Lear was in Gaelic. But I don't know that you can really say that those sources are the 'original' King Lear. That would be like saying that the Bible is actually the 'original' of the movie 'The Passion of the Christ'.</p>