<p>My purpose in starting this thread is very simple: I would like for the users of this online forum who are applying to MIT, including myself, to gain a mental image of its campus. If anyone has visited or is enrolled at MIT and has any idea of how its campus compares to that of other universities, say CalTech, Stanford, or the Ivy Leagues among others, and can share their opinions in detail, that would be great.</p>
<p><<<continuation of="" the="" comment="" above="">>>
Now, I think it's worthwhile to mention that the campuses of MIT and the Ivy Leagues are very different and not always comparable--MIT tends to lean toward modern forms of architecture while Harvard and the Ivy Leagues tend to be more classical. I would still, however, like to hear others' opinions about the aesthetics of MIT.</continuation></p>
<p>One important factor that drove me to inquire about MIT's campus is the fact that several of the people I know who claim to have been at MIT have argued that MIT's campus is small and unsightly, especially when compared to the campuses of the Ivy Leagues. I was wondering if anyone can corroborate/refute that assertion.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>i think caltech has the nicest campus ever :-P</p>
<p>(but don't use that as one of your factors in deciding where to go!)</p>
<p>I don't go to MIT, but I hang around it fairly often, so here's my two cents. It's a very urban campus, but that doesn't mean there's no green. There's Killian Court, which almost makes you forget you're in a bustling city, kind of. There's also the Charles River, but then, local wisdom says to never touch it. </p>
<p>It doesn't feel like downtown Boston, but it definitely doesn't feel rural either. Lots of cars on the streets (Mass Ave/Vassar is a pretty busy intersection, I'd say) but it's easy to cross Mass Ave to the student center, which is situated in a nice place.</p>
<p>It's definitely not particularly spacious or pretty, but it's compact, has a nice atmosphere, and you can get around with walking forever (getting lost at Dartmouth must be a fun experience.) </p>
<p>Inside, it's not particularly well-lit for my tastes in the hallways, but that's alright. Look up and you will see all sorts of tubing above the lights. It's really not pretty at all, and I'm not sure how I feel about the classrooms - but they're cozy. Also, Stata Center and Simmons look very nice. The Stata center is a comfortable, very large hangout.</p>
<p>I've only been to Stanford's campus. MIT's campus is much smaller, which I see as an asset -- it would take forever to walk across Stanford's campus!</p>
<p>I know people say MIT's campus is ugly. Personally, I like it quite a bit -- I think Killian</a> Court in particular is very beautiful (and classical), and it makes me happy to sit in Killian and look out over the river to Boston and eat my lunch.</p>
<p>MIT has an urban campus, and it's grown up very hodgepodge, so it's never going to look as planned and suburban as other campuses. I happen to think it has a lot of character.</p>
<p>(For that matter, what does it matter if a campus is beautiful? What are you picking, a school or a horse?)</p>
<p>Anyone Recognize?</p>
<p>First impression of MIT was that it was old, not in a classical way, but just old. When I got more acquainted with the buildings, there seemed to be an undescribable charm to it. The campus is not the nicest or the biggest, but put it this way, from the furthest point west (say Simmons Hall), to the furthest point east (Business School, East Campus, Kendall Station...), it's a good 25 minute walk, so I would say it's a perfect size. As for the actual MIT building, I still think it's a great size. I don't know what to say about the new abstract buildings being built though.</p>
<p>I haven't actually seen the campus, but I asked my interviewer what he thought about it. He said its the perfect size, not too big not too small, and has some really amazing buildings. Check out <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT%5B/url%5D">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT</a> , its quite comprehensive.</p>
<p>Yale = Stone
Harvard = Brick
MIT = Concrete</p>
<p>MIT campus isn't ugly - that's too harsh. But it's not especially beautiful either. It's much like a lot modern state universities --> doing the best they can with a mixture of mostly modern and some older buildings. It looks fine. At MIT the beauty is what is going on inside the buildings, not the buildings themselves.</p>
<p>I haven't been to the MIT campus, so I obviously don't have a clear perspective of it, but from the photos that I've seen of it, inside and out, I really like it. I prefer modern/abstract design, and most of what I saw was like so.</p>
<p>Stanford's campus was particularly appealling as well, from what I saw in their 2006 viewbook and on their website.</p>
<p>To expand on coureur's "Concrete" comment, the fairly recent additions of the Zesiger</a> Sports Center, Stata</a> Center, Simmons</a> Hall dorm, and the new Brain & Cognitive Sciences institutute to the mix of campus buildings have made defining campus architecture more challenging. The architecture is not visually <em>consistent</em> at MIT, but it's not ugly. Some of it is regal, some of it is modern, some of it is just utilitarian. </p>
<p>And once inside most of the buildings, there are inside connections to most of the others, so you can avoid spending much time outdoors in the MA winters, if you prefer. From what I can tell, most students consider that a plus. :)</p>
<p>(PS: Also recall that among the older buildings, there exists the Eero Saarinen Kresge</a> Auditorium, and the Alvar Aalto Baker</a> Hall dorm.)</p>
<p>Never judge the campus based on few photos, especially those on viewbook because of its aim to promote. </p>
<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT%5B/url%5D">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT</a> shows some of the nicest ones.</p>
<p>But then you look at <a href="http://www.geocities.com/annrata/MIT-Dome.jpg%5B/url%5D">http://www.geocities.com/annrata/MIT-Dome.jpg</a> and the buildings behind Killian Court look like housing projects. ;)</p>
<p>I visited MIT and the campus was alright to me. I was very impressed with Stanford's campus when I first visited. But after being there for couple months, I got used to it and it became nothing special.</p>
<p>At MIT the beauty is what is going on inside the buildings, not the buildings themselves.</p>
<p>At the risk of dating myself, let me say, "Right on!"</p>
<p>Nothing beats Stanford, but I'd say MIT is one of the most gorgeous campuses around. It's amazing. And I'm not even a science person and I still found a lot to love (sorry but I'm not excited by shiny labs...)</p>
<p>mootmom,</p>
<p>What you said about "consistency" made me think of Los Angeles, the city I live in now, immediately. LA has very diverse architecture and some of them look very nice <em>if you just look at each one of them individually</em>. I don't know anyone that thinks LA is pretty.</p>
<p>
[quote]
But then you look at <a href="http://www.geocities.com/annrata/MIT-Dome.jpg%5B/url%5D">http://www.geocities.com/annrata/MIT-Dome.jpg</a> and the buildings behind Killian Court look like housing projects.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Those buildings behind Killian Court are MIT buildings. There's the Sloan Auto Labs which are right behind the Dome, for instance...and I believe in the upper right area, building 37, which is one away from the Stata Center.</p>
<p>Thank you everybody for your views and detailed descriptions of the campus of MIT.</p>
<p>Several of you have brought up the fact that one shouldn't base the decision of where to go to college merely on how a particular campus size or aesthetics. I personally feel that, while a college's campus is most definitely not the most important factor that one should consider when making a decision, one must, however, keep in mind that a campus's aesthetic beauty and coziness will undoubtedly have an effect on the way one feels during the four years of college and should definitely be factored in into one's college decision making equation. But that is not to say that a college's physical features should ever outweigh things like academic rigor and excellence, resources and oportunities for the future, and social diversity.</p>
<p>In light of this new comment I would like to encourage anyone else to further address MIT in terms of its aesthetics and cozziness when compared to those of other colleges.</p>
<br>
<p>(eq? 'cozy 'beautiful)</p>
<br>
<p>==> #F</p>
<p>The word 'equation' was meant as a figure of speech, pebbles, nothing more. Your post, by the way, is a bit hard to follow.</p>
<p>Several of the people in this thread have said about MIT's campus:</p>
<p>"almost makes you forget you're in a bustling city"
"there seemed to be an undescribable charm to it"
"it's compact, has a nice atmosphere, and you can get around with walking forever"
"I like it quite a bit"
"it has a lot of character"
"it's a perfect size"
"looks fine"
"is one of the most gorgeous campuses around"
"It's amazing"</p>
<p>I think you can get a sense from these comments that people, including those who go to MIT or spend time there regularly, find the campus to be just fine, and CERTAINLY no drawback to them enjoying their time there.</p>
<p>MIT's campus is not Stanford's. The buildings are not California-mission architecture with vast green fields and palm trees. It is also not filled with ancient brick edifices with ivy climbing up the sides. It serves its purpose, it is pleasing to many, and from what I can tell from those I know who live there, it quickly and easily becomes <em>Home</em>.</p>
<p>What more do you need to know?</p>