<p>I wanted to know if Individual Acitivities Period (IAP) is actually an MIT program or just an event?</p>
<p>It’s Independent Activities Period, actually. </p>
<p>And it’s not really a program or an event – it’s just the month of January, which is free of required classes or commitments. Students can choose to do anything they like during that month, including classes and programs put on by MIT, research, short internships, catching up on the physical education requirements, or just doing nothing.</p>
<p>To give you an idea…</p>
<p>Last IAP, I took Maslab (a robot-building contest, for credit), Zombie 6.001 (an awesome CS class, for credit), Sport TKD (PE class), played a 10-day Assassins’ Guild game, was on Random’s Mystery Hunt team.</p>
<p>This IAP, I’ll be taking Battlecode (AI contest, for credit), Introduction to Weather forecasting (for credit), a blacksmithing class, a neuroscience class (I’ll finally poke at these “arduino” things, possibly an aircraft accident investigation and/or air traffic controller class, a radio class (building an array and doing fun things)… and possible a Guild game and/or Mystery Hunt again.</p>
<p>Some people will go do a month-long internship during IAP. Others will travel. If you’re in German II over IAP, you can travel to Germany (there are other languages that have this option as well, I think - Spain? France?). Some people hang around campus and go to a lot of free lectures and other fun activities.</p>
<p>Some people just go home for an extra 4 weeks, but I can’t imagine why.</p>
<p>@PiperXP - wow! that’s truly amazing! can I PM you btw? I have a doubt regarding the same still lingering in my mind.</p>
<p>Sure!</p>
<p>10char</p>
<p>@PiperXP Arduino rules! There is one in all of my projects :)</p>
<p>How does the IAP fit in financially? Is it an additional tuition fee?</p>
<p>Are the classes 5 days/week?</p>
<p>Reading Piper’s “for credit”… does that mean that a one month class can fulfill some elective or requirement?</p>
<p>If you’re a full student in either fall or spring, you’re eligible to take IAP subjects (no additional costs). (Note, you’re only eligible for housing for the half of IAP adjacent to the term you’re paying for. But I guess that’s probably not relevant ^^)</p>
<p>You might want to visit the website - [MIT’s</a> Independent Activities Period: IAP 2012](<a href=“http://web.mit.edu/iap/]MIT’s”>http://web.mit.edu/iap/)</p>
<p>Most IAP classes are just worth general elective credit rather than fulfilling a specific GIR or department requirement, but this is not always the case. You can take some HASS’s over IAP - mostly language classes - and a couple majors like architecture do have department requirements offered over IAP. </p>
<p>As for how often they meet, it depends on the class. Language classes (12 units/1 class) tend to meet daily. Some classes only meet for a week or two if they’re worth fewer units, or only three days a week, etc.</p>
<p>Most people come in with some credit or classes and end up not needing anything over IAP. I personally didn’t come in with any credit and would like to lighten up my senior year since I plan on taking some difficult labs 
You’re capped at one full subject per IAP (all the classes I’ve taken for credit have been 6 units, or half a subject - I’ve seen subjects ranging 2-12 units during IAP) unless you petition.</p>
<p>There are also a few first-semester freshman courses that spill over into IAP – 8.01L (physics) and 18.01A/18.02A are courses students can choose to take which continue into IAP. 8.01L is intended for students with a weak background in physics, so the material can be covered more slowly, and 18.01A/18.02A is for students who have taken, but want to review single-variable calculus (18.01) before starting multivariable (18.02). </p>
<p>I needed credit for a double-major, so I ended up taking research for credit during one IAP. During two other IAPs, I worked for pay in my research lab. During all four IAPs, I caught up on my phys ed credit, got a lot of sleep, and hung out with my friends.</p>
<p>I’m coding this IAP with Python and Matlab and going to try to secure either a UROP or job.</p>
<p>IAP is fantastic. I’m taking no classes, but I’ll be sitting in on the first week of lectures for the for-credit Web Programming Competition to upgrade my web programming skillz, taking figure skating and intermediate volleyball to catch up on phys ed classes, and continuing work at my current UROP. My boyfriend and I will also be working on some short stories we’ve been meaning to write and hopefully maybe try to publish somewhere. I’m so hyped. It’s going to be the best winter.</p>