<p>Not sure if these questions were already answered, so my apologies if I am duplicating information here:</p>
<p>“when you apply to the media lab, you apply for an MS/PhD degree in media arts and sciences that is research-heavy, but what coursework does this require?”</p>
<p>Actually, you can apply for either a terminal masters or the MS/PhD program. The majority of first year students from year to year from what I can tell actually are in the terminal master’s program rather than the MS/PhD track, though some apply for a terminal master’s and have their advisor talk them into staying on for the Ph.D. (our son has at least one such student in his group).</p>
<p>I believe you can check the program requirements online and my understanding is that the Media Lab is unusual in that actual coursework is determined by you and your PI (though the lab administrator also has to sign off before students can register, and she will step in when she feels a PI is overloading a student as our son’s PI wanted him taking a course the semester he was to write his thesis and students are NOT to take courses that semester and so she went to the PI about this, but he talked her into signing off on the extra course and all went fine…indeed, our son was one of I think only 3 students of the 27 signed up to complete their thesis that spring who actually got it submitted in time to graduate that June). Students can also sign up to be “listeners” (essentially the same as auditing) classes that they don’t need for their degree but are just interested in taking (our son did that a few times before he learned he could take more classes for credit in a given semester than was required for the degree). And MIT also seems lax about letting anyone just sit in on classes without even registering as a listener (our son has attended classes with friends and a girlfriend, for example).</p>
<p>Also, keep in mind that requirements can change while you are in the program. The doctoral requirements changed while our son was in the master’s program and so his requirements are different than when he first started there (but he prefers the changes, so it’s not a big deal to him).</p>
<p>“do i have to take the media lab courses (fairly non-rigorous) or can i focus on courses that traditional engineering grad students take?”</p>
<p>Yes, you can take courses that traditional engineering graduate students take, but you might actually find some of the Media Lab courses fairly rigorous. I’ve heard from grad students that courses by our son’s PI are tougher than graduate classes in general at MIT, and I know our son had to do WAY more physical work (creating actual things, not just doing problem sets) for one of his classes than for any of those taken through the math, CS, or engineering departments. But then our son has also had some Media Lab courses where he had to do rather little for a top grade (he got an A+ from an eminent professor there even when he handed in his final project just a few minutes shy of 24 hours late, something my husband and I felt ridiculous and that our son NEVER would have had happen with professors he had at his undergraduate school). YMMV.</p>
<p>“is the media lab cool with students who only intend to complete a masters degree?”</p>
<p>Absolutely. They are one of few places in the nation to my knowledge to fully fund terminal master’s students, and I am pretty sure (but not positive) that the majority of people who are at the Media Lab are terminal master’s students.</p>