Letters to Prospective Students from Current Students

Jason Acimovic

Seven years after graduating college, I applied to MIT from Liberia, where I was volunteering with a medical relief organization. What drew me to MIT was the diversity of the faculty and their research topics. I knew I didn't want to study finance or problems unique to big corporations (having worked for a bank already), but rather I wanted to research the applications of OR to the public sector. MIT is diverse enough academically that I can meet all my needs, but still be around people whose interests complement mine.

Students and professors are working on a really wide variety of applications, from hurricane preparedness to finance, from combinatorial optimization to the education gap, from airline scheduling to healthcare. Operations research is a rich field with a lot of applications, and most of those applications are being practiced here at MIT (unlike a lot of other places I looked).

The OR students also make up a really supportive group. After being out of school for so long, my math was pretty rusty. But everyone in the ORC is cooperative, and is wiling to take some time to explain a homework problem, a theoretical concept, or their research. Some nights we'll spend with a white board and a marker trying to understand a proof, and some nights we'll knock off early and head to a bar. All of us sit near each other, so it's easy to collaborate.

Additionally, the professors I've encountered have very specific ideas of what they want us to learn beyond what's in the texts, designing large parts of the curricula and lecture material themselves. The fact that they care enough to put the time in to do that makes me glad I chose MIT.

Allison Chang

Figuring out what I wanted to do with my life was hard during my last year of college. Fortunately, the ORC is a terrific place to be whether you can specify what you would like to research, or whether you have made little progress towards career planning beyond determining that your greatest interest lies in Operations Research. I doubt that I could have found a more encouraging environment anywhere else. The faculty are recognized leaders in the field, and it is a real treat for me to be learning from them, yet what strikes me just as much as their expertise is their concern for all of the ORC students and their eagerness to see each of us succeed. The vagueness I felt at the end of college included hesitation even about which degree program to enter. I came to the ORC as a Master's student, but have since decided to pursue a Ph.D. instead. Every professor who spoke with me about this conversion showed full support for my decision, and I believe that the desire to do everything possible to help students reach their goals is typical among the faculty.

Another reason to join the ORC is to be a part of the diverse student community. To some extent, we all share similar training as mathematicians, engineers, or computer scientists, but we come from different parts of the world, with different levels of experience. Some have been working for the past several years, and others have just finished a Master's or undergraduate program. The ORC is small, so it is not difficult to get to know your peers and to learn from them almost as much as you learn on your own. Moreover, the students provide an accessible and immediate support system on top of the encouragement already emphasized by the faculty. It is tremendously helpful to be able to work together on problem sets and complain to each other when we feel stressed.

My advice to anyone choosing a graduate school is to form a good idea of what it is like to be in the programs to which you are applying not only the choices in terms of coursework and research, but also the general day-to-day lifestyle. Talk to older students in the programs and if you have the opportunity to see the schools, it is absolutely worthwhile to do so. So if you are considering the ORC, email us with whatever questions you may have and then come visit! I look forward to welcoming you here. Good luck!

Dan Iancu

Not long ago, I was in a position very similar to yours, trying to decide about the right places to apply for graduate school, lookingfor as much information as I could get, and always feeling that I didn ’t know enough to make an educated decision. While the next passages will probably serve little towards addressing your major questions, my hope is that they’ll help you build a proper image of the OR Center and the people in it.

During my first semester at the ORC (and MIT, more generally), one thing I was particularly impressed with was thestrong emphasis on teaching. While passionately involved in (often times multiple) research projects, the professors find enough time to prepare their lectures meticulously, with detailed handouts, insightful remarks and problem sets well integrated with the material. I also found the curriculum to be very well structured. While first year students usually take similar courses in probability and optimization, there are a lot of classes available for in-depth exploration of a particular area or simply to satisfy one’s intellectual curiosity. Due to the interdepartmental nature of the center, the classes that can be taken for credit are drawn from numerous fields and hence accommodate all “flavors” of knowledge. For example, if you like applied operations research, then you’d probably find the courses offered in Sloan School to be more interesting. If, however, you have a more mathematical background or like algorithms and implementation, then you have access to a whole array of classes offered in the EECS or the Math Department.

But if you were to ask me what impressed me the most about the ORC, the answer could be only one: the people. The Codirectors are not only active in promoting the Center and its students, but are incredibly open to suggestions and discussion. I’m not aware of many places where, twice a month, the Codirectors have lunch with the students and give, as well as take, advice about all aspects of the student life. The administrative staff is incredibly helpful and supportive, to the point where it’s almost become a rule-of-thumb that whenever someone has a problem or a question, Paulette, Laura or Andrew have the answer. And last – but most certainly not least – the peers, who form one of the most cohesive and friendly student bodies that I have encountered. The fact that everyone shares a common space brings people together much faster than a large, segregated department, and the older students – with their advice and experience – make a first-year student’s transition to the new environment and life-style much easier. Within only a couple of weeks of arriving, you will not only find yourself knowing everyone’s name, but you will have already celebrated at least one birthday and a housewarming.

And just in case these words haven’t already convinced you that the ORC really is a wonderful place (or if you are a skeptic by nature), you always have a chance to see for yourself, during the Open House! For many of us, that was a trip worth a thousand words, and quite possibly the deciding factor in coming here.............

Rajiv Menjoge

MIT is a great place to be for graduate school.  One of the things I noticed after coming here is that as a graduate student, you tend to bond with people who are studying similar things as you.  What's great about MIT is that so many people in a variety of different fields are studying something which relates to your field!  The ORC is particularly great in that way because it is interdisciplinary, and so you end up getting to know not just ORC students, but also students in Sloan, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, and a variety of other programs that MIT offers.

MIT and the ORC in particular does a good job making sure that students get to know each other.  MIT organizes a large-scale graduate orientation, where you can meet a lot of people, and the ORC also organizes events throughout the term.

In addition, the Operations Research Center is excellent academically.  The professors are excellent in their teaching as well as their research, you can take classes from a variety of different departments, and there is a good balance between theory and implementation.

Allison O'Hair

I believe that studying operations research gives you the ability to make a difference in the world, and I decided to come to the ORC because of the many resources and opportunities here that will best prepare me for this.

We have the opportunity to work with and take classes from faculty who are leaders in operations research. You can start meeting with faculty members your first week, both to discuss your overall goals and to begin research. In my experience, the faculty here are determined to see the students succeed and make contributions to research projects that they are passionate about.  And since the ORC is a center and not a department, you can work with faculty from several different departments and areas, including the Sloan School of Management, engineering, and mathematics.  There are also many opportunities to attend seminars and sit in on classes from world-renowned academics.

Additionally, we are encouraged to explore career options by being a teaching assistant for a class as well as being an intern for a company. Studying operations research allows you to go into industry or academia after graduation, and each year graduates at the ORC successfully pursue both fields.

One of the best parts about the ORC is that the students form a great community that consists of people from all over the world. Students often discuss course material, brainstorm research together, or go together to grab a bite to eat. It is a great place to connect with people who share your same interests and goals. And although the classes are very demanding, you can always find another ORC student who is willing to help you understand the material.

I am very happy with my decision to come to the ORC and to pursue the field of operations research.  Coming to the open house in the spring really helped me to make my decision to come here, and so I would definitely encourage you to come visit and experience the center if you can.

Scott Seidel

I'm not your typical OR student/ORC candidate.  First of all, I'm an active duty Army officer that spent most of my last 10 years around soldiers and tanks, not around LPs and Markov chains.  I only recently entered the OR field, and that has been with limited schooling and limited application.  Fortunately, the Army gave me an opportunity to get a master's degree to get the training I need to be an effective OR contributor in the Army so I thought why not go to the best?

So why MIT/OR Center? The reputation of the ORC and MIT was what initially attracted me to the program.  For military members reading this that are potential students, the ORC's partnership with the Draper Fellowship Program is what really sold me on attending.  Draper and the ORC have a close relationship that has made the transition to student as smooth as possible (if you've been away from school for 10+ years, getting back into the academic frame-of-mind will have some hiccups that are unavoidable).  Between the two organizations, you get great advisors that make the master's program better than anywhere else.

What's it like to live in Boston/Cambridge area? I've never lived in a city before and so far the experience has been phenomenal (besides the driving, if you have a car).  The city offers so much in the way of culture and sporting events.  Things can be a bit pricey (professional sports, plays and musicals), but you can get various discounts.  The night life is great in Boston, many different areas that cater to different ages - beware though, you'll quickly learn that the mass transit closes early and its very tough to get a cab at closing time so don't stay too late.

What "tips" would I offer to a prospective student who is interested in attending our OR program?  As a master's student you will only take 2 classes your first semester, but the classes are 'fast and furious': lots of information and not as much time, especially if you are not as math-savvy as I was and having to relearn many concepts that others can easily access.  If you have not been doing extensive OR work or opened a text book in a long time, I would highly recommend the OpenCourseWare classes that MIT offers on-line. These are free and provide a wealth of information.  For the incoming master's student (especially if its been a few years), the undergrad linear algebra and probability classes would be the most beneficial in reminding you of the all the things you've forgotten.  The lectures and quizzes are all free and easy to access so spent an hour a night and get refreshed before you arrive.