So I’m currently a freshman at MIT and I have not enjoyed my experience here at all. Coming from a community deeply rooted in the HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities), I have always expected to have a certain kind of college experience and expected to be able to have a lot of friends that I could relate to very well. I hate that there is nothing that ties the campus together as a whole, just because MIT is such a diverse place. MIT is actually the exact opposite of what I thought and what I really wanted. I chose it for the prestige knowing that other schools would have actually been the perfect fit for me. I don’t mind having hard schoolwork, but I absolutely hate the campus-wide mindset that homework comes before everything. I know that there are so many people that love this place, but since it is so diverse, it is impossible to create an environment that all students can enjoy. I hate that there is no one here that can relate to me. The classes are so large with minimal communication during lecture and I feel that I’m just like a statistic. I also really hate that I feel so distant from all of the other members of my class and all of my professors. The best way to describe my experience here so far would be lonely. I know that HBCUs specialize in creating an educational experience specifically for African-American students. My first year has been close to miserable because I don’t feel at home anywhere, not even in my own dorm. Another thing is that I am a computer science major, so I am literally at the best school in the world for what I want to study. Yet, after a year of MIT, I have come to learn how MIT can always find a way to make you hate the topic you’re studying.
So there’s my spiel. I would appreciate some input, especially from people who are familiar with both the top-tier school and HBCU experiences.
I’ve never met anyone who tranferred from MIT to an HBCU. My advice: stay but join a student group at another, more diverse college in Boston, including Harvard, NE or BU, or even a local church group. Do NOT transfer simply because you feel alone. You are not alone as I’m sure you have family and friends praying for you and your success. You were meant to attend MIT and given this wonderful opportunity. Persevere and you will find a group of students with whom to hang out. Be patient and grateful you are there. Time will pass quickly and MIT will open the doors to you that you cannot fully appreciate today in your youth. Your loneliness is fleeting to be sure. Be strong.
Seattle TW, the problem with your advice is that cgarderi isn’t looking for a school that is more diverse, but one that is less so: in fact, he says multiple times that MIT’s diversity is the problem (quite possibly the strangest comment I’ve ever read on college-type forums). I guess there is something potentially refreshing about a student so frankly wishing for more homogeneity, but it makes me uneasy.
Now, to the question: If you really crave a more ‘Black-focused student experience’ with a larger and more socially active scene, yet you still want to study computer science, I’d recommend looking at Large State Flagship Universities in the SEC or places like U-Maryland and and Florida State, Utexas, etc. They all have very large research oriented science departments and I suspect that you can get into there ‘Honors Colleges’ and receive aid as well. All of these will have a sizable African American student population (by number if not always by percentage). More importantly, they’ll have historically black Fraternities and Sororities which will probably provide the social culture you say you crave. It’s not quite the best of both worlds (HBCU and MIT), but it will get you a bit of what you need professionally and socially.
Though, the best advice really is to stay put at MIT, to the advice of ‘be strong’, I’d add 'grow up."
Well, I wish you had looked into Concourse or ESG for your freshman experience… In any case, you may wish to get involved in BAMIT, or other student organizations on-campus (SIPB?). You may be able to get involved with ESG sophomore year, I am not sure. Finding community is always a difficulty- for everyone, everywhere. Also, joining a FSILG will give you an opportunity to be part of a community- you may want to look into that (especially the smaller ones over towards Boston Public Gardens).
It is there. Freshman year can be hard. Reach out, now, to the leadership at BAMIT and see what resources they recommend. Student leaders can be your best source of support in navigating “into” a new bureaucratic institution. The grass may not be greener somewhere else; sometimes it is just takes a little bit of effort to make the grass seem green where you are. MIT is certainly a welcoming community, so the soil is fertile right where you are.
Also, please visit with Prof. Jim Williams (course 2) and ask him to hook you up with a mentor. Just send an email and ask for a 20 minute appointment for advisement/mentoring. I think he will see you.
Congratulations for reaching out. You will be fine!
I did see the reference to diverse but inferred he was focusing on a lack of commonality at the school, which I’ve been to a few times, but not insofar as culture but rather in terms of disjointed physical layout, huge international and large graduate school presence that weighs against what you’d find in a school with a lot of school cohesiveness and spirit at the undergrad level, like an HBC, LAC or school with prominent sports tradition. But perhaps you are correct a that he wants a more homogenous student body.