Graduate Administrators (Grad Admins)
In departments and degree-granting programs, the graduate administrator (or “grad admin”) serves as the key representative responsible for a broad array of services and resources for graduate students. Responsibilities generally include the following areas: Please do not hesitate to contact individuals at the addresses provided, or either of the facilitators of the Graduate Administrators Roundtable, […]
Graduate Officers
The graduate officer is the faculty member or senior academic staff member who oversees graduate affairs on behalf of a department or degree-granting program. Graduate officers advocate for graduate students, provide guidance, manage conflicts, enforce departmental policies, develop strategic programming and curricula, and approve final degree lists. Most importantly, graduate officers work to ensure that a graduate […]
Committee on Graduate Programs
Committee description and charge The Committee on Graduate Programs shall consist of six elected faculty members, the Associate Chair of the Faculty, two graduate student members, and the following ex officiis voting members and/or their designee(s): the Vice Chancellor, the Vice President for Research, and the Registrar. The Chair of the Faculty shall appoint the Chair of the Committee […]
Departmental committees
Each department exercises a large measure of autonomy for its graduate program under policies established for the Institute as a whole. Under the general responsibility of the department head, each department has a departmental graduate committee, including one or more graduate registration officers, to administer departmental graduate procedures. A departmental graduate committee acts with power […]
Loans
While most forms of financial support for graduate students are granted by the academic departments, graduate students who are US citizens or permanent residents may apply through Student Financial Services (SFS) for federal and private student loans and/or student employment under the Federal Work-Study Program. International graduate students may only apply for private student loans. […]
Veteran benefits
More information on specific veterans’ benefits can be found from Student Financial Services. MIT administers veteran benefits, including Chapter 33 or Post 9/11 VA benefits, much like other external funding sources such as fellowships or scholarships, and thus, the same policies apply. Funding received from these benefits may affect your financial aid by first reducing the amount of […]
International students
Employment regulations for international students are more strict than regulations for domestic students, due to US immigration laws. F-1 and J-1 international students are allowed by immigration regulations to work on campus, but they need to fulfill three conditions: International students who hold full time research or teaching assistantships (equal to 20 hours per week) […]
Employment and professional activities
See Finding employment for information about on- and off-campus jobs and internships. Research and teaching assistantships and Instructor-G appointments A 100% research assistantship requires an average of 20 hours of employment service per week over the appointment period. MIT recognizes that graduate students typically spend significant additional time conducting research in support of their academic […]
Graduate resident advisors
Graduate students who have completed at least one graduate year at MIT or new students who were MIT undergraduates may apply to Residential Life Programs for positions as Graduate Resident Advisors (GRAs). The compensation for a GRA position includes free use of a room or apartment in the assigned residence during the appointment plus a monthly […]
Registration units
Maximum units for Research Assistants and Teaching Assistants A department or program may set a maximum number of units for which its student employees may register each term. As an exception, research and teaching assistants may register for one language subject, or in other subjects as listeners, without the units being counted against the maximum.
Tuition and salary payments
Most research and teaching assistants receive a salary as well as full or prorated tuition remission, as appropriate. The compensation for research and teaching assistants is adjusted to make the appointments equally attractive, taking into account the availability of tuition support, the opportunities for thesis research, and other benefits connected with each. Salary levels are […]
RA/TA/IG terms of appointment
Students who wish to be considered for RA, TA, or IG appointments should contact their departments. The information below is intended as a summary of certain provisions of the MIT-GSU Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). In all cases, the CBA shall govern. Duties RA, TA, and IG duties are set out in Article 19 of the […]
Research assistants (RAs)
Each year a large percentage of graduate students at MIT hold appointments as research assistants (RAs). Research assistants are student-employees whose employment terms are detailed primarily by the MIT and MIT GSU Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). A research assistant is a member of a research group in a laboratory or on a project, whose principal […]
Teaching assistants (TAs) and Instructors-G (IG)
The principal duties of a teaching assistant include, but are not limited to, assisting an instructor in classroom and laboratory teaching, preparing apparatus or material for demonstration, conducting tutorials and discussion sessions, holding office hours, counseling students, proctoring exams, maintaining course websites and monitoring discussion boards, and grading homework, quizzes, and exams. MIT appoints a […]
I-9 obligations
Who needs to complete an I-9 Federal law requires MIT to verify the identity and employment eligibility of all graduate students, including U.S. citizens, who are paid compensation for services. This includes graduate students holding a research or teaching assistant appointment. When to complete an I-9 You may complete the Form I-9 as soon as […]
RA/TA/IG appointments
Collective Bargaining Agreement updates Information on graduate student appointment policies related to the MIT and MIT-GSU collective bargaining agreement Research Assistants Role and compensation for graduate students in research positions Teaching Assistants and Instructors-G Role and compensation for graduate students in teaching positions I-9 Obligations Information and requirements regarding the Form I-9 RA/TA/IG Terms of […]
MEng considerations
It is important to note that in the course of completing a Master of Engineering degree, the status of the individual student will change from undergraduate to graduate. Once a student is classified as a graduate student by the Institute, their eligibility for certain financial aid programs will also change. The following conditions apply to […]
Accepting
MIT is a signatory, with most other graduate schools in the United States, to the following Resolution Regarding Graduate Scholars, Fellows, Trainees, and Graduate Assistants: “Acceptance of an offer of financial support (such as a graduate scholarship, fellowship, traineeship, or assistantship) for the next academic year by a prospective or enrolled graduate student completes an agreement […]
Applying
Applicants to MIT graduate programs who seek financial support from any of the fellowships, traineeships, or scholarships administered by MIT, including those granted by national agencies and foundations, should check the appropriate items on the online Graduate Application, and contact the graduate administrator of the department to which they are applying to explore financial aid opportunities. Additionally, […]
Awards
A fellowship or traineeship is an award to a graduate student that covers tuition partially, or fully, and also provides a stipend to help defray living expenses. A scholarship is an award that provides partial or full tuition. Most awards are made on the basis of merit, but in some circumstances can be based on […]
Diploma format
Master of Science: The diploma for a degree with specification reads as in the following example: “Massachusetts Institute of Technology upon the recommendation of the faculty hereby confers on (name) the degree of Master of Science in (department name) in recognition of proficiency in the general and the special studies and exercises prescribed by said Institute […]
Award of degrees
The application form for award of an advanced degree is available online through WebSIS. Students must submit this form to have their names placed on the degree list. Deadline dates for submitting advanced degree applications are listed on the Institute’s calendar, and processing fees will be charged for applications received after these dates. No later than […]
Degrees offered
Graduate degrees are awarded through each of MIT’s five Schools and through interdisciplinary programs. School of Architecture and Planning School of Engineering School of Science School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences Sloan School of Management Interdisciplinary graduate programs
Joint theses
Each thesis should contain the original contributions of a single student. In certain circumstances, collaborative research leading to a joint thesis may be advantageous in a master’s degree program. Students who wish to embark on a joint master’s thesis project should consult first with their individual advisors, and also with the graduate officer or the chair of […]
Thesis research in absentia
Thesis research is ordinarily done in residence at the Institute. However, on some occasions and in some fields, work such as the gathering of data away from the Institute may be essential or desirable. While nonresident thesis research status applies only to doctoral candidates, thesis research in absentia may pursued by either master or doctoral candidates. The […]
Preparation of graduate theses
Prior to inclusion on a degree list, each accepted thesis shall be submitted to the headquarters of the department or program in which the candidate is registered. Master’s and doctoral theses must be submitted electronically. The process for electronic thesis submission is described on the website for the MIT Libraries. In order to permit evaluation and grading […]
Copyright and intellectual property policies
Students may apply to waive the Institute’s ownership of copyright to their theses and/or the Institute’s ownership of the intellectual property that results from thesis research. An important distinction is that copyright pertains only to the thesis document itself, whereas intellectual property ownership pertains to inventions and other developments described in the thesis document. Copyright […]
Holds and restrictions on thesis publication
Thesis research should be undertaken in light of MIT’s policy of open research and the free interchange of information. Openness requires that, as a general policy, thesis research should not be undertaken on campus when the results may not be published. From time to time, there may be good reason for delaying the distribution of […]
Nonresident doctoral thesis research status
Thesis research is ordinarily done in residence at the Institute. However, on some occasions, it may be essential or desirable that the student be absent from the campus during a portion of thesis research or writing. Nonresident doctoral thesis research status allows thesis research to be carried out while not in formal residence at the […]
Thesis
The thesis comprises an original investigation, including a written document on a subject approved by a departmental or interdepartmental graduate committee prior to the beginning of the research. Thesis credit cannot be granted for work done prior to registration as a graduate student at the Institute, nor for work initiated without prior approval by the […]
How leaving MIT convinced me to stay
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.
small silver slivers
It was dark. Like the smallest sliver of a crescent moon, my roommate’s face was barely illuminated by the flickering glow of the twenty-six candles before her. It was just enough to see her manage a smile, lean forward, and, in a plume of smoke, send us into darkness again. It wasn’t the birthday she […]
Interdisciplinary master’s degree
A graduate student may apply to enter one of the following established interdisciplinary master’s degree programs, supervised by a special standing committee of the faculty: Computation for Design and Optimization Design and Management (Integrated Design and Management & System Design and Management) Health Sciences and Technology Oceanography and Applied Ocean Science and Engineering Leaders for Global […]
Interdisciplinary engineer’s degree
A graduate student may enter an interdisciplinary engineer’s degree program leading to a degree of Environmental Engineer or Materials Engineer. Specific information concerning these programs can be obtained from the graduate officer of the respective departments.
Interdisciplinary doctoral degree
Established interdisciplinary degree programs A graduate student may apply to enter one of the following established interdisciplinary doctoral degree programs, supervised by a special standing committee of the faculty: Individually tailored interdisciplinary degree path A doctoral student may also propose an individually tailored path whose boundaries overlap two or more departments. The student should consult with […]
Interdisciplinary degree paths
MIT offers many established interdisciplinary graduate degree programs for both masters and doctoral students. Find the programs listed in the MIT Bulletin. Occasionally a doctoral student may desire an individually tailored program whose boundaries overlap two or more departments. The initiative for arranging such an interdisciplinary program lies with the student. If the interdisciplinary degree proposal […]
