Tips for New Students

Being new to campus can be overwhelming, especially at MIT. But let us assure you that this place will feel like home before you know it! Yes, MIT students study and work hard, but they also get involved in campus activities, find time to have fun and make friends that will last for a lifetime!

We hope these tips will be helpful for you! It is up to you to assess your choices and make decisions that are right for you. MIT offers tons of opportunities for you to become involved on campus, both in and out off the classroom, which are exciting and designed to enhance your time at MIT.

• Academics are your priority! You have the opportunity to learn from and study with some of the greatest minds in the world. The academic opportunities at MIT are amazing!! Make sure you take advantage of these opportunities. Talk with your academic advisors, professors, and of course – other students - about what you can do to become involved in research and other academic opportunities at MIT.

• Learn to manage your time carefully. P-sets, labs and class work will stretch your ability to balance school and free time. While you may have been able to procrastinate in high school and do fine, that might not work at MIT! But be sure you get involved in activities that give you some BALANCE!!, blow off some stress and help you meet people!

• Learn to work in groups on academic projects. You may be used to working alone on academics. What you may find at MIT is that many of the students here are of your ability and helpful to work with on Problem Sets (P-Sets) and other academic projects.

• Learn to pace yourself! While pulling all nighters might have worked in high school, it may not work at MIT. You might find that pacing yourself to be sure you get enough sleep and down time will mean that you are able to work better and harder when you are focusing on academics. Be prepared for a change of pace in your academic strategies!

From MIT Students Who Have “Been There”

• Ask for help when you start to need it, not when you’re already buried! People who get to MIT have been at the top all of their lives, and asking for help for the first time is hard. It’s an important thing to be able to do. One of the lessons we learn in a hurry at MIT is to walk down the hall of your dorm and find an upperclass student or a Graduate Residence Tutor (GRT) who you can talk with. They have all been freshman too and are glad to be there to give you a hand!

• The Academic Resource Center is helpful.

• Talk to your advisor for advice. If your advisor is bad, get a new one.

• While you’re here, always remember: you wouldn’t have gotten in if you couldn’t handle it.

• Make friends, have fun, laugh….and don’t do anything stupid!! Use common sense when it comes to activities. Learn how to manage the new peer pressure that’s part of any new place – think for yourself!

• Do what you can handle and what you are interested in. Don’t do things you dislike – make sure you have variety.

• Take advantage of the opportunities you have at MIT and make the most of everything!

• Keep an open mind and try different things.

• Meet lots of people!

• Don’t worry too much.

• Don’t be lazy.

• College is not and cannot be classes only. Get to know people. Participate in extracurriculars. Classes can be taken anywhere - the people and activities are what make MIT special.

• During the first term of your freshman year, you’ll take your classes pass/no record. Don’t take pass/no record lightly. It is meant as a cushion and not a mechanism to let people slack off. Pass/no record gives you a chance to find the right balance for you. Make good use of it.

• For the academic intensive, don’t let grades dictate your life. Too many people at MIT have that problem – it’s just a hole that they can drive themselves into.

• The most important thing to having a good MIT experience is finding the best place to live. (See the dorm web site list on the “Links” page.) MIT academics are the best, and you’ll be able to find all the academic challenges you want or need here, regardless of your major or your level of background. The X-factor is whether you live in the right place. Each dorm has its own character and can provide you with a different support structure and a different environment to grow as a student and as a person.

• During CPW (Campus Preview Weekend), from the mailings over the summer and during Orientation, look around and find the right dorm for you. Check out some places during Rush, regardless of your preconceptions of Greek life.

• Take a look at FPOPs (Freshman Pre-Orientation Programs)…they are a great way to get to campus early, get to know some other students and meet some faculty – gives you a head start at getting settled in at MIT!

• You are not alone in your MIT experiences! You have 4000 students and friends who are doing the same thing you are – Striving to attain a degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Along the way, you will meet some of your best friends for life. What more can you ask for!?!