Education
MIT provides an undergraduate education at the forefront of technical knowledge. The Institute is committed to ensuring that this education remains focused on addressing and solving the world’s most intractable problems, while upholding the most rigorous academic standards.
MIT prepares leaders for business, research, government, education, and society at large, so it must teach its students to be fluent communicators, culturally knowledgeable, intellectually agile, and confident.
MIT is well suited to respond to the rapid expansion of knowledge in science and technology, and to the changing demographics and experiences of today’s students. Many of the most promising answers to these educational challenges have evolved at the Institute—the product of individual faculty members, or of the collaborative efforts in departments, centers, and laboratories. The task ahead is to nurture the creative impulses that flourish here so that these fledgling initiatives, as well as others that might be developed, will become part of the MIT education for all.
The MIT Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons recently completed a review of “General Institute Requirements”—the foundation in natural sciences, mathematics, technology, humanities, arts, and social sciences that form the core of an MIT education. The report, the most comprehensive review of MIT undergraduate education in the past 50 years, recognized that changes in the world today require some very important improvements to the curriculum so MIT can offer a broader, more flexible educational experience to prepare students to solve complex, global problems.
The Campaign for Students aims to improve the undergraduate experience by:
- supporting new teaching initiatives by fostering interdisciplinary studies and providing more classroom resources;
- emphasizing experiential learning through UROPs and internships;
- emphasizing international experiences through support of the MIT Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) and other similar programs; and
- integrating life and learning through leadership opportunities, mentoring programs, and supporting diversity activities.
Student Stories
Rajiv Saigal
Fifth-degree black belt in tae kwon do and doctoral candidate in the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology
Rajiv is currently working on treatments for spinal chord injuries in Professor Robert Langer’s lab
Tae kwon do and health science. Supporting students makes connections like these possible
Overviews
Educational innovation
Creative teaching for a competitive world
MIT would not be among the world’s leading universities if it did not innovate in education.
Hands-on learning
Learning outside the classroom
MIT’s hands-on learning initiatives are living laboratories, as well as opportunities for students to help people in need across the globe.
International activities
Asserting the value of global experience
The goal is that, one day, all MIT undergrads will have a chance to work, study, or travel abroad without financial or academic penalty.
Learning spaces
Flexible spaces to fit class and community
MIT students and faculty deserve facilities that support their path-breaking work — no matter when, or where, it takes place.
Learning to solve big problems
Enhancing the undergraduate common experience
Changes in the world today require some very important improvements to MIT’s common undergraduate curriculum. Here’s the overview.
Legatum Center Fellowships
Legatum Fellows at MIT: Progress Through Innovation
Legatum Center Fellowships Enable MIT graduate students to launch innovative businesses that generate global prosperity.
Life and learning
Valuing leadership, mentoring, and diversity
The right experiences give undergraduates the perspective to see how their academic pursuits and their future lives might connect.
OpenCourseWare
OpenCourseWare: Unlocking knowledge, empowering minds
Once just a bold idea, OCW is now an unparalleled global educational resource. But challenges lie ahead.
Teaching and learning
Shifting emphasis to student learning
The Institute contributes to a national shift from focusing on teaching to focusing on the ways students learn.
Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program (UPOP)
Providing professional opportunities and experience
UPOP introduces engineering sophomores to the realities and demands of engineering practice in the real world.
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