MIT just math and science?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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<p>I do enjoy science classes. That’s why I’m on my third year of college science classes at the local university. I could graduate next year with two degrees, but I’d like to go somewhere else to get a bit of variety. I’d just like a bit of a break (like, a semester) from all that intense science in college. Is that really too much to ask? </p>

<p>And I think I’m completely justified in saying that someone is socially awkward, especially when it is true. And, I’ve only commented on his social skills because that’s what made me have doubts about MIT… I could have talked about him actually understanding my research project when so many people don’t, or him being very kind when I talked about my terrible home life, but I didn’t because it wasn’t relevant to my question/issue. I’m not ragging on MIT here, I’m raising some questions that I have about the only thing that is detracting from the school in my mind. Yes, MIT has my dream research lab (Stephanopoulos), and it’s in an excellent location for the arts and business (Boston), and it has the best study abroad program for the sciences I’ve ever seen. I love all these things, but they are not a part of the doubts/questions, so I did not post them. </p>

<p>Of course I wouldn’t apply to MIT if I didn’t like science- duh! I’m just saying that I have broader interests than that, and I’ve been heavily focused on science, and I’d like a semester break from it. Yes, I know about the extracurriculars. I’d like to have some classes that aren’t science, but are challenging- something that I haven’t gotten as of yet. Seriously, if that is so foreign to MIT students, then I should withdraw my app right now. Having a break and not burning out on a subject? That should not be foreign o any student, and it will be a part of my college career.</p>

<p>I thought MIT was the perfect place for me, but after considering the social awkwardness already present in my nerdy group of friends, and then seeing the EC be a bit awkward, it was a bit too much and I needed a bit of reassurance from someone who actually knows MIT. I have social skills, and I’d like to have some friends at college that have social skills. That’s all.</p>

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<p>I feel like you’re missing the point - people at MIT do have social skills. Part of having social graces is being able to interact with a variety of people, regardless of how ‘awkward’ you may think that they are. This is an area in which many MIT students excel - they’re capable of seeing that someone who doesn’t make eye contact really listens to what you have to say, for example, or perhaps someone with a weak handshake really has his stuff down when it comes to organic chemistry. It is a very important skill to be able to look past someone’s exterior and be able to recognise that, despite his or her quirks, he or she is an engaging and interesting person, and one who you’d like to get to know better. If a little bit of awkwardness is going to make you doubt that MIT is the place for you, well, in all honesty, it’s probably not.</p>

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<p>It’s more that the awkwardness freaked me out when I’m considering going through a ton of hardships in going to MIT. I’m sure there are socially adept people there, and I just needed some reassurance. All I got was a couple helpful comments and a tons of people jumping down my throat. I’m not reducing the EC to an awkward person- I’m just saying that was something that concerned me when combined with other experiences. If you had read my post, k4r3n2, you’d see that I see other things that I like about the EC… I mean, he’s a person.</p>

<p>I get your point about the social skills not defining academic skills. yes, that is true, and a lot of my friends are like that. i can a do spend time around those kinds of people having fun. I would like to spend time around people that know their organic chemistry and have a good handshake. That combination is something not present at the local university here- either you party and skive off school, or you’re a complete nerd (I know there’s a medium, but there are waaay to many party-ers here). I’d like to hang out with people that can speak articulately, be socially comfortable, and have mad science skills. That’s what I was hoping to find with the people at MIT, especially as the interview component of the application is so heavily weighted. I need to find the balance. There are some articles on the mitadmissions website talking about this balance, and that’s part of what had me excited about the school.</p>

<p>Do you understand where I’m coming from?</p>

<p>btw, I’m actually studying for a diff EQ exam now, and enjoying it. Hmm, I bet there’s a lot of that at MIT.</p>

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<p>oh, and thanks to mollie for the blogs on the arts. they are really helping!</p>

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<p>All I’ve really seen is people telling you not to freak out or make snap judgements about an entire university based on your negative experience with one person. Perhaps you should wait and come to CPW if you’re still nervous that MIT is full of socially awkward nerds.</p>

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<p>This thread is making me want to tear my hair out.</p>

<p>I side with k4r3n2. I could go into it, but I think everyone is on edge enough now that any response I give would just be seen as an attack on somebody.</p>

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<p>you guys are making me want to withdraw my app. seriously. </p>

<p>I’m done with this thread/conversation. I have other stuff to do- like actually completing my apps.</p>

<p>Bye.</p>

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I’m not sure which major specifically you’re considering, but the science majors with whose requirements I’m familiar (brain/cog sci, biology, physics) all have lots of room for elective courses, and you could choose to take your electives in any department. I ended up doing a double major with my extra elective space, but others make different choices.</p>

<p>You could also consider a program like [url=<a href=“http://shass.mit.edu/undergraduate/mmj/joint]21S[/url”>http://shass.mit.edu/undergraduate/mmj/joint]21S[/url</a>], which is essentially a design-your-own major combining a humanities field and a science field.</p>

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This is something that varies quite a bit from person to person, and one thing to keep in mind is that it’s something of a virtue at MIT to exclaim loudly about how much work you’re doing an how little sleep you’re getting.</p>

<p>But for me (as someone who’s not a super-genius by any means), I had time to complete a double major, cheer on the cheerleading squad, work in my undergraduate lab, spend time relaxing with my friends and boyfriend, and sleep about 7 hours a night. It took time management skills, for sure. But even in my busiest semesters, I was not doing homework 10 hours a day, and nobody I knew was doing 10 hours of homework a day, either.</p>

<p>My feeling, if it means anything, is that you should apply and worry about going if you get in this spring. I am completely confident that you can find a group of people at MIT who will make you happy.</p>

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<p>I can speak to this as I have been involved in recruiting and selecting EC’s. It is not as easy as it sounds. For starters, my territory is big, I need to fly to get to parts of it, and as a result, I have EC’s working in my own territory that I have never met. Now before I sign someone up as an EC, I want to communicate with them, usually by e-mail and phone to validate that everything seems right, and assuming that it all does, then they become an EC.</p>

<p>EC’s are some of the finest, most wonderful people that I know. They are all MIT alums that are so enthused by their MIT experiences that they are willing to share them with a crowd of eager applicants each year. For me personally, it takes roughly an hour to do an interview and around three hours to write the report. The deadlines apply to us also, and heck, MIT even grades each interview report we write on how useful it is to the admissions office. So when I am recruiting EC’s I am looking for articulate, motivated giving folks who are willing to put in many, many unpaid hours to assist MIT and applying candidates.</p>

<p>And the wonder of it, is that it isn’t harder to recruit ECs. The six EC’s who live closest to me are a banker, a computer programmer, a fashion designer, a musical composer, an HR director and a management consultant. They come from all walks of life, and are united only in their enthusiasm for MIT, and their willingness to help.</p>

<p>Now in some regions, I have a surfeit of EC’s and I can afford to be quite picky. But I lost three EC’s in one part of my territory in the last few years, leaving me seriously shorthanded there and any reasonable and articulate EC expressing interest there is almost certain to be accepted. There are some 2850 EC’s all over the world. The overwhelming majority of them are exceptional people, but if there is the odd one who is “very nice” and makes “a good impression” who nevertheless has minor social failings, then I am not at all surprised.</p>

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<p>OK, now you are talking about stuff I can talk about. I did study theatre at MIT. I got out and worked professionally in theatre and held an actor’s equity card. I know of several people who have done this, and I never took any courses off campus. Don’t misread what I was saying. The arts cross-reg program isn’t for everyone. The advantage of it, if you are into the visual arts, is to take courses at a design school, both MassArt and SMFA are specialist visual arts schools offering programs deeper than those offered at any general university.</p>

<p>However, for the performing arts, lets talk about what is available on campus. In the music department, twenty-three professors and lecturers who specialize in composition, performance, music theory, and music history offer a wide variety of classes. In the theatre program courses are taught on campus in acting, stagecraft, set, costume, and lighting design, playwright and directing. </p>

<p>You speak of extra-curricular groups and there are many of these from the musical theatre guild and the Gilbert and Sullivan players, Roadkill Buffet (the improv comedy troupe) and the Black theatre guild.</p>

<p>However, there is a great deal of faculty led training. Professor Janet Sonenberg develops work with students that is eventually produced in the professional world. Most recently, she commissioned a play between MIT and the Royal Shakespeare Company of the UK, on which the MIT students served as dramaturgs and creators.</p>

<p>Plus the 4-1-4 academic calendar allows you to use IAP to tour. Nothing gave me more useful theatrical training than the January touring schedule. Last year Dramashop toured the UK.</p>

<p>Now don’t get me wrong. There are far better theatre programs in the US. Yale, Northwestern, UCLA, NYU, Vassar, Brown and others all have better programs than MIT. But at none of these schools are you able to do theater while still having “science as the main focus.” It cannot be done. These programs are solely for people who have drama as the main focus. And if you do not, then you are limited to a wide range of extra-curricular activities.</p>

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<p>I think I can really sum it up simply by saying that you pick your own poison while you’re at MIT. Here, we have this culture of hardcoreness which unofficially dictates that taking you should not be taking anything less than 60 units in one semester (the official average load is 48). I’ve taken 57, 60, 60, 54 credits over my last four semesters, and I can tell you that the amount of sleep that I get is proportional to how many units I take (this isn’t exactly rocket science). If sleep is a high priority, then you should just choose what you do so you get enough of it. I think it’s fair to say that you’ll make decisions like this at any other college, and it’s not just at MIT where students make the sacrifice between work and sleep.</p>

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<p>I don’t see why this is a problem. I’m double majoring now in biology and history, and I’ve taken a semester where I took just ONE science class and four humanities. Is this too shocking for you?</p>

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<p>I do feel like you should LOVE science. </p>

<p>To be completely honest here, I think a lot of people applied to MIT thinking, “oh yeah, I did well in science in high school and I’d like some challenges - what’s so hard about it?” and get a bucket of ice water dumped on their head after they start taking classes.</p>

<p>I quite honestly feel that there’s no point wooing you to come to MIT purely on a “we have a greats art program alongside science” argument. You need to get it clear in your head - are you willing to commit to science enough to come here? Because, not gonna lie to you, you will have to put in a lot of effort towards science before you can graduate. Unless you’re a pure humanities students here, I feel even the more “well-balanced” students here who take a 50/50 mix of science and humanities feel like they’re still doused in a rigorous science training. Personally, this is definitely something that I came to MIT for (even though it does feel a bit overwhelming at times), but I wouldn’t say the same to any humanities-centric student exploring colleges. MIT science coursework may hurt, but it instills in you the ability to look at the humanities through the lens of science and analytical thinking, which is something I feel like I’ve never seen at the curriculum at any other university. Science at MIT is all about teaching you to be a critical, analytical, and innovative thinker, and is very different from the “work” mentality that I’ve been personally reading between the lines in your posts, and probably something that you’re used to expecting from science.</p>

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<p>You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Once you get in, there’s CPW, there’s the Overnight Program, there’s local admitted students gatherings. I think that will serve to more realistically address many more of your concerns rather than a bunch of text on an internet forum.</p>

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<p>Because what someone says on the internet should affect major life decisions.</p>

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At least she listened to <em>something</em> I said? </p>

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<p>Lol if you’re gonna break this easily (from a bunch of anonymous internet posters), I can’t imagine how fast you’re gonna break at MIT. People on this forum are giving what they consider good advice. Very few of us actually care much at all whether you end up coming to MIT since there are more than enough awesome applicants to take your spot. Stop complaining.</p>

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<p>I think you have to look at it this way.
You like science and math (I’m also taking multivarible, diff eq and vector calc - awesome stuff don’t you think? :D) and you thought about applying to MIT because it has your dream research lab etc etc.
So I understand you are worried about social interaction and the arts but why not apply first and if you get in then decide after looking and comparing MIT against the other choices you have?
We all have doubts but I think you shouldn’t decide NOT to apply somewhere because of your doubts. Deal with your doubts after you get in. :slight_smile:
As a hs senior applying to colleges I’m in the same boat as you are so I hope this helped somewhat.</p>

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<p>Even someone who hasn’t taken a college statistics course should realize that one person is not a very reliable sample size. The OP shouldn’t be prone to harsh judgments about that person, let alone the school he represents, simply because of a brief correspondence and meeting.</p>

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<p>Oddly enough, the term in which I took the fewest units was also my most hosing.</p>

<p>(It was the term that I took the old 6.170, which explains a lot.)</p>

<p>The culture of hardcoreness is to a large degree self-imposed. I knew an awful lot of people, including some extremely smart and successful ones, who rarely or never took more than 48 units/term. I never heard anyone give them crap about it (and nobody ever gave me crap during the ~half of terms when I took 48 units). On the other hand, I’ve seen plenty of people beating <em>themselves</em> up over not taking more units.</p>

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<p>^^ The above I think holds in most math/science-focused schools, though somehow that self-imposed image gets around and influences others too. The bottom line, as some professors have made clear to me, is that a class is a class (deep observation, I hear the applause coming), and what you get out of it is up to you. Usually any upper level class teaches something that one could spend all one’s time on during the semester very easily. </p>

<p>My general view has come to be that one is at a great school of learning, so it’s possibly a great idea to sit in on many classes where people who know what they’re doing are talking, given they’ve already figured things out for you and you just have to absorb it (in some senses, although of course doing this is hard too). But enrolling in a million classes for image is really rather silly, because it’s no guarantee one is actually legitimately getting more done, depending on what (hopefully useful) barometer is used.</p>

<p>And also, seriously I don’t think it’s possible at any school for the number of credits to accurately reflect the workload unless classes have crazily varying credit-counts attached.</p>

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<p>To be honest with you, there’s only a handful of people I know that’s taking less than 60 units this term. </p>

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<p>Despite what I wrote, I think judging someone by the number of credits they take is just silly. Last semester, I took a 18-credit lab class that honestly felt more like 24, and this semester I’m taking a 12-unit class that feels like it’s 18. Conversely, Spanish 3 was 12 credits but it felt like 3. </p>

<p>I feel like there’s a disparity between engineering courses and other courses too, and also the amount of science/humanities classes. I don’t know if it’s just me, but if I had the choice to do all humanities I could probably handle 6-7 humanities courses in one semester. However, I have to spend a significantly more amount of time on science so I try to go for a 50/50 mix with 4-5 classes.</p>

<p>The grades that you get in the class also matters. People take less classes than what they can handle at times because they want to get straight As.</p>

<p>The fact of the matter is, the # of units doesn’t matter quite that much and I’m only pointing out a phenomenon. I’m definitely satisfied with the amount of credits I take.</p>

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<p>Right, in a sense I guess I can easily imagine several scenarios where it would be “bad” to have less than very good grades, and signing up for fewer courses and doing the ones you want to focus on very thoroughly can be best (i.e. one can always audit other classes one is interested in). It’s only a problem if one knows one won’t do the work for the course without having signed up for it officially.</p>