Dear Wrestler,

I would like to start by telling you about myself. I grew up in the state of Maine. I enrolled at Western New England College in Springfield, Massachusetts and competed there for 3 years. My senior year I transferred to Augsburg College in Minneapolis, Minnesota and won the Division III National Wrestling Tournament at 150 lbs and a team title in 1995. I then coached at Augsburg for the next four years, taking two more team titles and a pair of second place finishes. I came back east, to Boston, as the assistant coach at MIT for two years. In the spring of 2001 I accepted the head coaching position.

In the seven years I have been at MIT I have seen steady improvement. In a conference of 15 teams (the largest conference in the country) we have been slowly rising the ranks. Our main obstacle is filling the 10 weight classes. This past season we consistently filled only 5 of the 10 weights. Fortunately, we will be returning all of our wrestlers and expect a very strong freshman class.

We have nine incoming freshman for the 2006-2007 season. These new team members will fill our holes. I believe we can be a top team in the conference this upcoming year. I feel to get there you must have your priorities set. The priorities in this program are: (1.) Family and religion (2.) academics and (3.) wrestling. While I realize the importance of academics, particularly at MIT, I expect my wrestlers to bring the same dedication, discipline and work ethic on the mat. I believe the priorities will help you become successful not only in wrestling but also in life.

Academically, MIT is world renowned and was recently recognized as the most selective school in the country. The average scores of students accepted at MIT (2005) are 1430 on the SATs and 32 on the ACT. It is never too early to start thinking about you application. It is important to take the highest level classes your high school has to offer, for example AP courses and any college level subjects. It is also important to maintain a high GPA. Also be aware of deadlines and required paperwork. For more information about the admissions process, click here.

I hope that this letter answers some of your questions about MIT. You can contact me by email at: tlayte@mit.edu or by phone: home 781-477-9058 or MIT 617-258-0332. Please keep me posted about how you are doing both in the classroom and on the mat. I have attached a questionnaire, please fill it out and return it to me. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Tom Layte
Head wrestling coach

Go to the questionnaire.