Admission
The selection process at MIT is holistic and student centered:
each application is evaluated within its unique context. No school, state,
or regional quotas are applied; neither is preference given to those with
alumni relations. Selection is based on outstanding academic achievement as well as
a strong match between the applicant and the Institute, including:
- Alignment with MIT’s mission
- Collaborative and cooperative spirit
- Initiative and risk-taking
- Hands-on creativity
- Intensity, curiosity, excitement
- Balancing hard work with downtime
Selected undergraduate admissions statistics for 2012:
- Applications for freshman admission were received from 18,109 candidates.
- Admission was offered to 1,620 candidates (8.9 percent), of whom 1,135 enrolled.
- Approximately 46 percent of the freshman class was female.
- A majority had attended public high schools.
- Fourteen percent were among the first generation in their family to attend college.
- Ten percent were international citizens hailing from 52 countries.
- Forty-six US states were represented.
Applicants for graduate degree programs are evaluated for previous
performance and professional promise by the department in which they
wish to register.
Selected graduate admissions statistics for 2012:
- Applications for graduate study were received from 22,588 candidates.
- Admission was offered to 3,504 candidates, of whom 2,229 (64 percent)
registered in advanced degree programs.
