<p>Could current students or interviewees who are trying to decide between the two programs comment on how they made/are making the decision? What stands out to you (good or bad) in the two programs? Personally, I think the flexibility of Harvard's department is remarkable and probably unmatched elsewhere. On the other hand, MIT also has really terrific faculty members and a really unique first year program. However, MIT's program doesn't seem to be as flexible as Harvard's program (not just in terms of the number of faculty, but in terms of the diversity of labs and departments available). On the other hand, I feel like MIT students probably get to know their classmates better than Harvard students do because of the smaller size of the department. Are these sentiments correct? I'd like to see how others have made/are making their decisions between these two programs. Thanks!</p>
<p>Glad to see I’m not the only one stuck between these schools ;)</p>
<p>For me, I love the sheer number of labs available to you at BBS, but I don’t know how much the numbers should matter, since I’ll ultimately be joining only one (maybe two) lab(s) after rotations. I really like how MIT’s program seems more student-oriented and how tight-knit the group was, especially for first year. But then there was no “Pit” equivalent at Harvard to hang around, so maybe I just didn’t talk to enough BBS people. I also like Cambridge a lot more than Longwood, especially with having all the biology buildings within a 3-5 minute walk to each other. I’m really split on the research between the two schools…Harvard has tons of really fantastic labs doing A (while MIT has almost no one), but MIT has stronger groups doing B, so for me, it might come down to what I think I want to do in my PhD…</p>
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In short (as an MIT Biology undergrad/Harvard BBS grad student), absolutely.</p>
<p>As a small point in Harvard’s defense, while I don’t know my classmates particularly well in general (especially now that I’m not taking classes any longer), the grad students in my lab are my best friends, and I know the students in my department (SCRB) well also.</p>
<p>I love both places. It’s tough to go wrong with such a great choice.</p>
<p>As a way to decide, check what happens if you fail the quals at MIT.
In BBS I believe you can take them several times, while in OEB for example you only get 1 more chance…</p>
<p>I think that you guys understand the strengths/weaknesses of the programs very well. MIT is not a very flexible place, but they have a ton of support for students, and I think that the first year program was amazing. It is a much smaller place in general, with everything in within like 100 feet of each other- it’s harder to lose touch with others and it’s easier to know all about the research going on around you. But it is smaller, and there are several fields (immunology is a big one), where MIT really doesn’t have anyone.</p>
<p>I would not choose based on what happens to you if you fail your quals-- you shouldn’t assume you will, and its really really rare to do so. Choose based on how much you like the program and the labs. You can’t really go wrong with either.</p>