MIT or SAC of USC?

cellardweller
Fri, 03 Apr 2009 17:45:43 +0000

One thing to remember is that engineering is going to require a lot of work wherever one goes. The unique element at MIT that does not exist anywhere else to the same extent is the very strong support structure provided the students.

First, students always work in groups especially freshmen: you are never alone. It is part of the culture and there is no issue of pride in asking for help. My D struggled somewhat in math and found a study group that helped her along. In biology, she was the one helping others.

Secondly, dorms are not segregated by class year, students pick a dorm by affinity. Your D will be with a group of people that share common interests. If need be, she will be able to ask an upperclassman down the hall for assistance and they are typically more than willing to help. If you need extra help in a particular subject, the school will assign a tutor, typically a grad student to work with you at no cost. As a sophomore, My D joined a sorority and there is always somebody who took a particular class the previous year to help out.

Finally, MIT is completely non-competitive. No grades first semester, no ranking of any kind, lots of options to take classes on a trial basis, late drop dates. The school goes out of its way to allow students to experiment without worrying about failing.

Students at MIT do work hard and probably study for more hours than at most schools. But much of that is by choice. “Drinking from the fire hose” is part of the MIT experience. Most students at MIT are intense about what they do and often take on extra projects and activities because they enjoy it, not because they have to. Still, they find time to do lots of things outside of class. Very few if any students work Friday or Saturday nights. There are more varsity teams (41) than virtually any school in the country, the gym facilities are excellent. My D spends time doing research, volunteering at a hospital and a homeless shelter, doing yoga and swimming. She still finds time to go a party at one of the fraternities, go shopping or to the movies, cheer at an MIT basketball game and even watch an occasional TV show or eat out with her friends. She leads an extremely busy but still very normal life for a young adult.