<p>It amazes me how the world's two topmost institutes of technological learning: MIT and CalTech, use only snail mail to communicate their admissions decisions. Now now, almost all colleges either email the decision / post them online so that you can know instantly and eliminate difficulties faced by geography, in addition to mailing them. Is there a reason MIT doesn't do that?</p>
<p>Maybe the kids applying to these two schools are the same ones who could hack the system in some way. Didn't that happen with some grad school a few years back?</p>
<p>Read this post by Marilee Jones on the MIT guest blog. About halfway down she explains why they use snail mail. <a href="http://tim.mitblogs.com/%5B/url%5D">http://tim.mitblogs.com/</a></p>
<p>In case you don't want to read the entry (it's long -- although you should read it because it's very heartfelt):
I can only imagine the anxiety you are feeling, the anxiety you describe online, as you are waiting for our decision, and I apologize that we still do things the old fashioned way - on paper, through the mail. I hear you when you say that the agony is unbearable and I believe you with all my heart. But we want to make sure that when we deliver the decisions electronically, it will be done right technologically, and this year we do not have the assurance that we can do that.</p>
<p>My staff also knows how I feel on this topic: while your generation has a completely different attitude towards personal privacy from mine (you guys love pouring it all out to the universe on blogs while my generation fears that Big Brother is watching), you are still teenagers and the public rejection of checking decisions on line in front of others is much more hurtful than finding out in your own time in private under your own control. A sense of control is essential. You don't have to tell everyone where you've applied, nor do you have to tell everyone where you were admitted or rejected. There are many advantages to privacy. Yeah, privacy is good.
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<p>regardless of what they decide in the future, there is something solid and assuring about holding a package in your hands. a couple of pixels couldn't really have had the same effect ;)</p>