Majors and Minors
At MIT, freshmen enter undeclared and most choose a major at the end of the second semester. Choosing a major is an important decision and is not necessarily the same as choosing a career, but for many students, their undergraduate major choice leads directly to a specific field and/or career. MIT is an interdisciplinary institution with a wealth of ongoing cross-departmental research.
Don't feel that you need to plan out all of your four years at MIT before you arrive. Use your first year to explore the opportunities available to you and the departments that you may find of interest. The first year is full of exciting programs and events designed to help you identify your interests and explore the possibilities. If you try to rush through the curriculum or tackle too many advanced courses, you'll be missing out on many of the unique experiences that await you.
For a preview, check out Exploring the Majors on last year's (Class of 2016) website. Those pages offer more specific information about departments, including information on current research, what majors do after graduation, classes to visit, and logistics.
Exploring the Majors information for your class will become available from this site in Fall 2013.
