<p>I've heard about MIT as an amazing research institution. However, I'm rather concerned about its focus on undergraduate. Are the classes in MIT taught mainly by Profs or TAs? How committed is the institution to undergraduate teaching and its students?</p>
<p>All of my classes have been taught by professors, though TAs frequently do the recitations. (Many classes have 3 lectures per week with two recitations that help with reviewing material.) </p>
<p>I’ve heard of other schools where putting grad students over undergrads is the norm, and I don’t quite get it. The Institvte’s approach seems to be quite different, in that there isn’t really as clear a barrier between undergrad and grad. An undergrad may do research, may take any class he or she is ready for (I know plenty of undergrads taking grad-level classes), etc. The social lives of undergrads and grads seems to be quite different, but I don’t see the opportunities being different.</p>
<p>I come from a much more overcrowded research school than MIT, and one whose undergraduate program likely has considerably more flaws - yet I think the motivated student can get a terrific undergrad experience if in the right major. At MIT, I am sure all these positives are more present.</p>
<p>Key things though:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>you have to seek opportunity at a big research school. Be ready to find some profs and students intimidating and exclusive. </p></li>
<li><p>know that there will be the share of profs who love to mentor younger students - academic excellence can often correlate with a desire to impart the knowledge well to those interested. Key being, if you’re not interested, you will feel left out, but if you take the initiative and talk to faculty about what you like, they’ll probably find something for you to do.</p></li>
<li><p>Small schools do exist, where the focus is on every class being small, seminar-like, and with quality teaching. These will most likely afford considerably less flexibility than what Piper described MIT to provide. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Since profs at MIT are used to interacting with many different kinds of people - postdoctoral researchers, grad students, undergrads, I think they tend to blur the lines a lot more. I am just substituting “MIT” for “top research school” here - Piper and others are actual students and can say more specific things.</p>
<p>This may, however, mean that if you want to work on a project, you will be expected to come talk to the professor with some maturity. Expect questions like “what? Be specific” when you go talk to them. Expect them to at times answer your question in a sentence, and then leave you with little to say. Expect profs who have potentially 10-ish grad students to mentor personally, postdocs to talk to, conferences to attend, several classes to teach, to be busy people, and a little harder to get hold of if you just want to chat randomly. But, at the same time, know they will make themselves available if you are formally committed to a class or project with them.</p>
<ul>
<li>grad students can run recitation sections at times, but this is probably not a bad thing. The professor doesn’t need to be babysitting every last thing that happens between you and your course experience.</li>
</ul>
<p>in that there isn’t really as clear a barrier between undergrad and grad.</p>
<p>This is the one key line to keep in mind. It can be a positive for some, a negative for others. In a tough field like EECS, grad students may take the undergrad classes on solid state devices, both undergrads and grads may take some grad classes. The difference even in the label of classes actually begins to disappear somewhat.</p>
<p>Since, really, grad school is about research, and classes are less emphasized, often grad classes will only be taken by a few people who care. Some of them which are more fundamental may be more populated.</p>
<p>Undergrad upperclassfolk who are closer to knowing what they want to do are about as likely to be sampling around the advanced classes as first and second year grad students. They’re also about as likely to be doing research. </p>
<p>The major difference happens with older grad students, who commit to spending several years on single fields of study, and those are a category of their own, and likely closer to the postdoc end than the undergrad end.</p>
<p>This blur may appeal to some, and not so much to others. But it’s also perfectly possible to attend a top research school and not do research and just take interesting classes with good professors, maybe even take mainly small classes - this would more closely mimic the smaller teaching-focused schools, but if this is one’s desire, potentially one will consider just going to one of those small schools.</p>
<p>
The professors at MIT are committed to teaching and researching alongside MIT students. As others have said, the distinction between graduate students and undergraduate students is largely not made.</p>
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<p>That’s how it should be for a research university. “The core of the MIT spirit is collaboration and cooperation”, more so between graduates and undergraduates.</p>
<p>Hi - </p>
<p>All MIT classes are taught by professors, and all MIT professors teach classes. </p>
<p>Recitations (sort of a discursive supplement to the main lecture) may be led by grad students. But in terms of your original question - MIT is exceptionally (and unusually) committed to having its professors teach for a school of its type.</p>
<p>I’d also like to add that professors all hold office hours for their classes where you can approach them one-on-one for help :)</p>
<p>Thanx for the quick response :D. I can’t find anyone to answer a similar question at Caltech.</p>
<p>Several people responded to u on Caltech site. Remember, there is a 3 hour time difference between the coasts.
Answers are similar.</p>
<p>… I will note that I am on the west coast right now :P</p>