MIT vs. Stanford - Undecided STEM

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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<p>Hi! I hope you can shed some light on my college choice - I have narrowed it down to MIT and Stanford.</p>

<p>I am undecided on my major right now, but am positive it will be in STEM. I put physics on my application, but that could easily change. I plan to go to graduate school and earn a PhD directly after college.</p>

<p>Biggest Concern: Thus far, I have had an atypical high school experience for someone with STEM aspirations. For ~5 years, I have been devoted to an athletic pursuit. I do not plan to continue participating in this activity, and plan to "transition," if you will, from a highly competitive athlete into a physicist/engineer/whatever. I am not sure if I will fit in at MIT initially, because I have had a very "normal" high school experience living and breathing this sport - I don't have research experience, follow politics, read books, play video games, etc. So in this regard I feel like Stanford has the edge.</p>

<p>I am going to both CPW and Admit Weekend to learn more, but here are my current thoughts:</p>

<p>Stanford is the school I'm currently leaning towards. I feel like I will have by far the best time at Stanford. The student body is incredibly diverse and I am confident that I will be able to find students I can relate to, from day 1. Their powerhouse athletic teams and well-rounded departments seem like they will provide the quintessential college experience, which appeals to me. However, it is rumored to be easier than MIT, and to have grade inflation. I am worried that Stanford will not prepare me as well, but it is on the quarter system which would allow me to take many more classes and sample more of my interests.</p>

<p>MIT had been my dream school for a long time. I know the most about this school, and there are certainly awesome things about it like IAP and the Pass/No Record first semester. However, my largest misgiving is in the student body. From our interactions thus far, I feel out of place with the other students, most of whom have extensive knowledge in their prospective major and are already involved with STEM projects outside of the classroom. In 4 years, I want to be a good fit for MIT. I just don't know if I'm there right now.</p>

<p>Factors to Consider:</p>

<p>- Research Opportunities/Internships
I know that MIT has the UROP program, and am confident that I will be able to find a position requiring little/no prior experience. I am not as sure about Stanford. Location also plays into this, Silicon valley is often touted as a huge asset to Stanford but I'm not sure how beneficial it will be to me. Computer science does not interest me and neither do startups, so it would be very helpful if someone could speak to the differences of Boston vs. Silicon Valley for internship opportunities.</p>

<p>- Professor Accessibility
Stanford is apparently notorious for having little undergraduate focus. Is MIT better?</p>

<p>- Rigor
MIT is selling itself as providing a totally unique experience. It prides itself on collaboration and the unmatched difficulty of its classes. Will MIT give me a superior education to Stanford? And do you think I can handle this with my high school background?</p>

<p>Thank you for reading this, I appreciate any and all advice!</p>

2

<p>I think most freshmen don’t have a terribly good idea of what they want to major in so you definitely will not be unusual in that regard. While many students are involved in STEM projects outside of the classroom, many probably most students are not when they arrive at MIT. My guess is that MIT is somewhat more undergrad focused than Stanford but it is still a large research university and undergrads are not necessarily the focus. You’re first year you’ll mainly be in large lectures other than humanities/social sciences (possibly those as well). After that it really depends on what you major in. Some majors like EECS have 200-300 majors per year so classes stay fairly large while some other majors have like 10 majors per year and correspondingly smaller classes. There is definitely less grade inflation at MIT than Stanford though part of that is probably the difference in the distribution of majors (STEM majors probably have below average GPAs at Stanford).</p>

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<p>MIT!!! Haha. But my recommendation would boil down to this: in my humble 18yo opinion, if you go to MIT, you will get the best all-around STEM education in the world. You’re not alone in your “normal” hs life. I’ve never done research, etc either. There are all types at MIT even though it is a “tech” school, and if you’re certain about STEM i’d definitely go with the #1 STEM school in the world ;)</p>

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<p>

I really don’t think this is statistically true – that most freshmen come in with extensive knowledge about their majors and with research experience. There are a number, yes, and there are probably more than at most schools. But most people come in with some ideas about what they might want to pursue, and with a lot of passion and excitement about whatever those things may be, but not necessarily with a definite sense of what they’re getting themselves into. :slight_smile: </p>

<p>Let me see if I can grab pebbles, who used to post a lot on CC. She was a physics major, and she’s now in a physics PhD program (a cross-town traitor, like me), and I don’t think she had any physics experience prior to coming to MIT. </p>

<p>Speaking for myself, of course, I didn’t have any previous experience in my majors prior to arriving at MIT, and I never felt that was a problem for me socially. Overall, MIT is a very good place for people who feel like misfits in one way or another.</p>

<p>

People don’t have a problem finding internships, and a lot of MIT students do summer internships in Silicon Valley anyway, for a nice change of pace. Whether you go to MIT or Stanford, there shouldn’t be an issue with finding a summer job.</p>

<p>If you plan to go to a PhD program straight out of undergrad, though, you are probably better-served by staying on campus to work at your research position over the summer. Internships aren’t a problem for a PhD application, but the expectation is that you’ll do academic research.</p>

<p>

I would argue that being a “good fit” for MIT is more about wanting to do the things necessary to be an outstanding scientist/engineer, not about being one already.</p>

5

<p>This is somewhat tangential to the rest of the thread but

.</p>

<p>While I certainly believe this is true for lab sciences like biology this is not the case for all fields. In math and (parts of?) physics, students are more likely to go do research at REUs at other campuses than stay on campus. While I think there is an expectation that you will do some research at least in math there is no expectation that you will spend all three summers doing research and it’s of course possible to spend the other summers doing internships. Social sciences or humanities typically do not expect undergrad research.</p>

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<p>Now that I’m on a computer instead of a phone, I can be more insightful :smiley: Like molliebatmit said, I don’t think <em>most</em> students enter with significant experience/research/knowledge in their major. I personally am entering with the knowledge equipped to me by a few AP classes and being generally smart – nothing more. I don’t know how to code, I’ve never done research, and I’m taking physics for the first time this year. But I’ll be fine at MIT. And so will you, if that’s where you choose to go. :slight_smile: MIT serves kids who have already attained some expertise in their field, but the vast majority of the time, they are simply taking talented, passionate kids, and giving them that expertise.</p>

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<p>My daughter is in her second year at MIT and she didn’t have any research under her belt. She was a varsity and club volleyball player, President of Amnesty International a singer and actor. She did participate in Robotics and excelled academically but she fell under what you seem to portray as a typical high school experience. I know many of her peers at MIT are the same. As other posters have said - there are many students who enter MIT with research and STEM experience under their 18 year old belt but not all spent their high school years in labs. The best thing you are doing is attending CPW and whatever Stanford has for prefrosh. That will be the best way to make your decision about the appropriate fit for you. Good luck.</p>

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<p>Having advanced knowledge in engineering fields is almost impossible as a high school student. It’s even uncommon for even the top physics people to have knowledge of physics past electricity and magnetism or waves (more commonly, they will be extremely advanced at math.) I would say that most MIT admits have exhausted the major AP math and science offerings, probably were on the math team and were like the best person on the team, and probably have some kind of science/tech EC at which they excelled at a reasonable level (regional or state awards). However, the science EC may not necessarily be in the field they will study, or even if it is, it may not really overlap with the MIT curriculum. For example, science olympiad (the team event, not the individual tests) is a common EC, but I wouldn’t say that meant that people had seen a significant portion of the curriculum in a science major at MIT.</p>

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<p>

Ah, sorry. Of course, I’m a biologist, so YMMV. I would certainly classify doing an REU at another school as part of “academic research” rather than as an “internship”. I was clumsily trying to say that staying on campus to work at your UROP is the path of least resistance, but not that going elsewhere to do research was a problem. </p>

<p>It is indeed my opinion that, for biology and neuroscience, the standard is that you’ll do three summers of academic research, and almost certainly research during term as well. Doing a summer of something else isn’t a kiss of death, of course – one of the other MIT alums in my lab did a summer at McKinsey, e.g., and one of the other MIT alums in my PhD cohort did a summer at a biotech company. But working at your UROP, or taking a summer research position elsewhere, is more highly regarded.</p>

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<p>Another piece of advice regardless of wherever you go is to find out the expectations of whatever fields you’re interested in early if you want to pursue a PhD. In math the expectation is that you’ll take lots of graduate classes as an undergrad and maybe do research one summer. In biology, research is much more emphasized. Physics may be totally different.</p>

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<p>Thank you to everyone who has responded, it makes me feel somewhat better about MIT. Stanford becoming the #1 dream school and claimed by many to be the ultimate undergrad experience is pulling me that way, but I will keep an open mind going into CPW!</p>

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<p>Hey guys, thanks so much. Sorry about the novel in the OP, you were right. I went to CPW. I loved it. Basically all my doubts are erased. The only thing is rigor, but honestly I think I would have a MUCH more manageable time struggling through a monstorous workload with everyone around me than struggling through a heavy workload with people in “easier,” less time-intensive majors around me. So thanks.</p>

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<p>I’m glad to hear that you had a good time at CPW, and that it was useful for you. :)</p>

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<p>Hooray! :D</p>

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<p>Hi unicameral2013,</p>

<p>Sorry to hijack your thread, but your story really spoke to me as a junior who also has STEM aspirations, but is also involved as a highly competitive athlete. Do you ever regret not giving up your sport to spend more time in STEM-related pursuits? I am highly interested in a variety of STEM-related activities, but I’ve always put my team commitment first. </p>

<p>On top of that, I am not disadvantaged and I could have reached out for internship positions (as many people in my school have). Meanwhile, I have minimal lab experience and am minimally involved in other extracurriculars because I spend so much time training for my sport. I’ve only gotten the lab experience by taking a summer off, which is something that I won’t be repeating again. Was it a mistake to continue a sport that I will not be taking to the professional level when I could have done so many interesting things that I would enjoy, and that will help me in the future? I feel like you might understand how hard it is to give up something you love, even if it’s for another passion.</p>

<p>Thank you for taking the time to read this. I once again apologize for hijacking your thread! Your story just gave me so much hope while I listen my parents tell me to quit my sport every day.</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>Not necessarily. Are you male or female? Many schools are looking to give Title X athletic scholarships to Women so they can be in compliance with Title X diversity requirements. These are primarily Division 1 schools. For every male football player they want to give a scholarship to, they have to find a female in any sport and give her a scholarship.</p>

<p>Regardless, as long as you are very good at your sport, your athletics may be the “hook” you need to make it into a top school. Something that differentiates you from the rest. Crew is big at MIT. Not that you would be recruited to be on a crew team.</p>

<p>Schools want kids that pursue their passions. If you can keep up your grades at the same time, then follow your passions.</p>

<p>Note: You have realized that you can’t have it all (sports and internships). Be comfortable with the decisions you have made.</p>

<p>All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.</p>

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<p>Ironically, a top student (relative to one’s high school and with top stats) who uses their extra time to become a recruitable athlete may have a better shot at elite schools than if they had invested that time into academic pursuits with similar results.</p>

<p>I think there is something flawed with this, but it’s the system we have.</p>

<p>

I don’t think crew is more of a hook than other sports at MIT, despite its division I status. I assume this is what you are implying.</p>

<p>A key question for the OP is how good are they at their sport(s). Are they recruitable?</p>

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<p>MIT is Division III, thus not able to offer merit scholarships (recruit). It was more of an observation that there is athletics at MIT. If a student was a talented crew member, it might make a difference (assuming all else being equal).</p>

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<p>OK, well, rowing is the one division I sport at MIT. Consequently, people sometimes assume this means that being recruited is a bigger hook in crew than in other sports, but I don’t think that’s true.</p>

<p>The term “recruit” doesn’t necessarily mean a school is offering a scholarship; it just means that the team wants you to be admitted so you can play on their team.</p>

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<p>Firstly, thank you, OperaDad and collegealum314, so much for your responses! And once again, I apologize for stealing this thread!</p>

<p>Yes, I am a female, and I am perhaps within recruitable range for my sport, but coaches wouldn’t fall over themselves to talk to me. (Unless a school was desperate for a perfect AI.) I would certainly love to continue my sport at MIT if possible, but I have not generally looked to be recruited because I am looking for a strong education—first and foremost, and I have a statistically safe shot at a lot of more athletically oriented schools without having to commit myself to four years of a rigorous athletic program (that could interfere with majors, class attendance, etc.) </p>

<p>From what I’ve gathered, an “athletic recruit” to MIT is more of an extra extracurricular, like a hobby, but not a noticeable boost, and not something that will make your application stand out (especially because I have a few B+'s). I honestly like that people won’t be able to get in just for being athletic, but oftentimes I wonder if the 30-40+ hours (including travel time) I put weekly in are going to be something that I will regret.</p>

<p>On one hand, if I were to be accepted to an institution like MIT, I would perhaps feel out of place like the OP, but it seems like he/she were able to find his/her place at CPW. Would he/she rather have pursued a more mainstream STEM interest? </p>

<p>On the other hand, if I went to a local state school (that people say is much less rigorous than my current high school), I would move on to college, missing all of the opportunities that my current environment offers. Here, I could easily get experience that might help me land an internship opportunity at a college where such things are rare, or I could get an after-school job to help pay for an education and an institution without MIT’s generous financial aid. It makes me feel kind of terrible, sometimes, that I have so much here that I don’t take advantage of. </p>

<p>Sorry for the really long post, but thank you so much, again, for all of your replies!</p>