Reccomendations to get to MIT?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello, I didn't really know where to put this, so move it to the correct forum if u must.</p>

<p>Currently I am in my freshman year of Highschool, in my second semester. I didn't do so well on my first exams, getting an average of B's a few C's, and and A, so I decided I need to do better.</p>

<p>The problem is my friend is a bit smarter than me, and has an average of A's, and is in honor classes, and we wanted to go to the same college. Basically, I need to know what I can do to get in with him. He is currently shooting for MIT, because we want to learn to program.</p>

<p>I was wondering for MIT, and schools of its class, what kind of grades I would have to aquire, what kind of classes I would have to take, along with other activities, etc.</p>

<p>Currently I'm taking Biology, Honors Japanese, Algebra 1, English9, Health (finished), P.E., Buisiness foundations (finished), Intro to 2d art, & World Geography over my freshman year. I want to know what classes I should choose for next year, and what kind of grade average I should obtain to get into MIT.</p>

<p>I figured since I messed up so far I can pull it back together and still get into a good college with my friend. Thanks for any and all help.</p>

2

<p>just go to the MIT thread and look at all their grades/SAT scores. You also want to be taking the most difficult math/science courses available as well, and definetely get A's in them (unless you have some extenuating circumstances).</p>

3

<p>plan on at least 5 academic classes each year: history, english, math, science, foreign language/academic elective, an the most rigorous course schedule your school offers (honors, AP/IB), particularly in math and science. </p>

<p>Since you are a freshman, you can investigate numerous clubs on campus, and narrow down to 1-3 that you really enjoy.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

4

<p>What we think of as "Computer Science" can be broken into three different areas: </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Programming (of all kinds) - people who like to use the available software tools (languages, compilers, software development kits, etc.) to make programs that accomplish tasks, solve problems, or provide entertainment to others.</p></li>
<li><p>Computer SCIENCE - the more abstract/mathematical aspects of how languages work, the algorithms and complexities of logic, organization, and things like that. These are the people who design and create the languages, compilers, and other tools that the people in group 1 use.</p></li>
<li><p>The Electrical Engineers/Computer Engineers - the people who design and create the hardware and firmware that group 2 uses to make the tools for group 1.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Schools like MIT are not programming schools. Computer Science and Computer Engineering schools produce the Group 2 and Group 3 types. People can't believe that I got a graduate degree in Computer Science without ever taking a programming course. That stuff you were expected to learn on your own. So what did I learn? Theory of languages, principles of artificial intelligence, language theory and transformational grammars, mathematical logic, principles of operating systems, computational complexity, and on and on....</p>

<p>But the interest in Comp Sci usually starts with an interest in programming. The question for you - as you develop your interest - is: do you want to be a user of the tools and hardware, or do you want to design and develop new tools and hardware?</p>

<p>I'm not knocking programming - most undergrad comp sci people go into programming. But that is not necessarily what the major is all about and "going to MIT" and "aiming to be a programmer" are two statements that don't really go together. But you're only a freshman, so you're only at the beginning stage of discovering what you really want to do. It'll be a fun journey.</p>

<p>Anyway, back to your question: My son got a FAQ sheet from MIT in the mail, and it had this question: "Which would be better to help me get into MIT - an A in a regular course or a B in an AP course?" Their answer, in so many words, was: "This is MIT. We expect you to get an A in your AP course." So the answer is: math, science, and AP courses, with A's in every one of them.</p>