Blogs: Why I Came

Crafting is engineering, music is math

What I learned from teaching design and engineering to elementary schoolers

Sept 2021

Mechanical Engineering

I am a serial maker: as a child, I dove deep into a new creative obsession each year. With each medium I explored, my passion for making grew, and projects flooded my house: a giant model of the Parthenon made from recyclables graced our front hallway, a crochet stuffed dragon perched in our...

How leaving MIT convinced me to stay

Navigating academia and industry as a grad student

Aug 2021

by Anonymous .

Architecture

Industry or academia? It’s a question at the forefront of many MIT grad students’ minds. I first found myself at this crossroads at the end of my undergraduate career, unsure whether I wanted to follow the path of a practicing engineer or that of an academic researcher. Being indecisive, I reached...

Second time’s the charm

Finally at MIT after an undergraduate rejection

June 2021

by Miriam K.

Nuclear Science and Engineering

I remember driving down Massachusetts Avenue with my mom when I was 16. We were in New England on a family vacation, so she arranged a campus visit at MIT for me since I was trying to decide which colleges I should apply to. It was a beautiful July day. We had a meeting with an undergraduate...

When is the best time to start graduate school?

Pros and cons of fresh-out-of-undergraduate and post-young professional paths

April 2021

by Jessica W.

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

I’ve technically had two “first days” of graduate school. The first one was in September 2012. Fresh out of undergraduate, I arrived that fall semester at MIT - completely burned out. After graduate school applications and a grueling final senior semester, I was running on fumes. I joined a lab...

Getting closer to my “luck”

The story of my journey to MIT

March 2021

by Zhutian Y.

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

This is a story about an imperfect person finding her way towards incredible mentors and places. One day, I wish to hear your version of this story. 4 years ago, I was a sophomore in Singapore, studying signal processing and software development. I wasn’t the person I aspired to be - I wanted to be...

A Journey through Time: Voyaging into Boston’s “Other” History

Personal Growth Outside of MIT

March 2021

by Pervez A.

Sloan School of Management

When you read the words “Boston” and “history,” what do you think of? For most folks, two events typically come to mind: 1) The Boston Tea Party, or 2) Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride (contrary to popular belief, he...

COVID-19 Elevates Incidence of Impostor Syndrome in 1st Year PhD Student

A virtual MIT student, by any other interface, still belongs here.

March 2021

by Brandon K.

Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology

“Please have your tracking number or a copy of this email and your MIT ID with you when you come to the Facilities Customer Service Center located in Building 7 Room 019. Keys may be picked up Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 3:00 PM excluding MIT holidays.” Great! Today was the day I would...

An Unconventional Path to MIT

From Industry, to MicroMaster’s, to Master’s

Jan 2021

by Maria R.

Supply Chain Management

For many of us, MIT has been our dream school since childhood. My personal journey leading to MIT took four years. It was a long time, but worth the wait. Let’s start at the beginning, in the summer of 2013. I had recently obtained my bachelor's degree, and had decided to take some time off before...

Mitconceptions

Unlearning what I thought I knew about PhDs and MIT

Jan 2021

by Viraat G.

Biological Engineering

“Wait up for me!” I shouted after my father as I scrambled to keep up with him. At 6 years old, I didn’t really fit in with the college students dotting the quad under the hot summer sun, but I also didn’t really care. My dad, a professor of economics, was letting me tag along as he went about his...

My advisor left MIT during my PhD

Making difficult decisions with incomplete information

Dec 2020

by Cherry G.

Biological Engineering

It was a chilly November morning in 2014, and two months into my second year at MIT. My PhD advisor called for an all-hands group meeting with required attendance. We crammed into a tiny conference room: all 15 of us, whose lives were about to be turned upside-down. On the screen, my advisor...