About the Blog
We, the Graduate Students of MIT, welcome you to our Blog. This is where we tell our stories. We pledge to be unadulterated and unabashed in this pursuit. This blog is our playground, our stage, our field of dreams. It is the collective diary of the MIT graduate cohort. We’ll write of our experiences — […]
Grad Update
The Grad Update is a quarterly update from the Office of the Vice Chancellor with news, updates on programs and initiatives, and resources for MIT graduate students. Grad Student Update: Fall 2022The answer to “summer melt;” welcome to new students; Covid-19 this fall; Activities Fair; Lesson planning; MIT GAIN; Ad Hoc Committee on Grad Advising […]
Contact Us
General questions Grad-Ed@mit.edu | (617) 253-4860 👉 For direct general questions; quickest response time during business hours. Graduate Admissions gradadmissions@mit.edu 👉 For questions about general admissions information, application requirements, deadlines, or application fee waivers. ❗ Questions about application status or a specific graduate program (e.g. program curriculum, application requirements, eligibility, or financial support) should be […]
Policies
Graduate Polices and Procedures The Office of Graduate Education maintains a comprehensive guide of policies related to registration, degree standing, financial assistance, and faculty oversight. Please visit the Graduate Policies and Procedures website for further information. Jeanne Clery Act The Jeanne Clery Act, a consumer protection law passed in 1990, requires all colleges and universities who receive federal […]
Services
The Office of Graduate Education (OGE) includes the office’s headquarters as well as support for admissions and the Graduate Student Council. We offer the following services to students and staff: Prospective Student Support Use our admissions pages to find the MIT graduate program that’s the best match for you. Prepare for your graduate education with […]
Welcome
Welcome to the Office of Graduate Education (OGE)! Here in the OGE, we take pride in our part of each graduate student’s journey toward their degree — and we take pride in you, our current and prospective graduate students. MIT graduate students’ daily experiences embody the motto of “mens et manus,” or “mind and hand,” […]
Services & team
Together, we foster academic excellence and quality of life for MIT’s community of graduate students. The Office of Graduate Education (OGE) provides a number of services to current and prospective graduate students as well as departments, including student support and development; diversity- and community-building; advice on fellowships and financial wellbeing; oversight of policies and procedures; […]
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OGE Awards
Generous donors have provided MIT with permanent funds in support of stipend awards for students who fall into unique categories. The Office of Graduate Education administers these awards through an annual competition. All nominations must be submitted by the departmental graduate office on behalf of the student. Students who qualify for one of the awards […]
Student finances & employment
MIT makes financial support available to graduate students from a variety of sources and in several different forms. Some forms of support are granted solely on the basis of merit; others are granted on the basis of financial need, a combination of merit and need, or on other factors. Neither the department nor the Institute […]
Frequently asked questions
We have answered many of the most common questions in the sections below. Because of the decentralized nature of graduate admissions, most of these questions are answered in general terms and may not apply to all departments. For specific department requirements, please visit the degree programs pages. If you have additional questions, please email gradadmissions@mit.edu. General Questions […]
Events & Blog
Upcoming Events SEE ALL EVENTS Recent Blog Posts SEE ALL POSTS Recent News SEE ALL NEWS
Staff
Meet the Office of Graduate Education staff Our staff look forward to speaking with you! Please click into staff member profiles to see specific examples of how they can help you, as well as their schedules, contact information, and office locations. Staff
Rethinking orientation in the COVID-19 era
Orientation is the stepping stone of the graduate student life experience at MIT. Every year, the Graduate Student Council (GSC) Orientation Committee (OC) organizes a series of orientation events for incoming graduate students. Unlike many other American universities, the MIT graduate orientation is not a one-day or one-week event. For instance, orientation lasted over four […]
All-weather outings/innings in the Northeast
Moving to Boston from the Bay Area to start school at MIT, I had already mentally prepared to reduce my outdoor climbing and indoor climbing train time. Paradoxically, while being in the Bay Area, while I had access to world-class climbing destinations within a 4 hour drive, distance was a barrier that made those destinations […]
Times may have changed, but MIT will not
My first year at MIT was filled with opportunities, more than I was able to take advantage of. In just one walk down the Infinite corridor, I could pick out a dozen flyers that piqued my interest. I deliberately slowed down, knowing that I had four to five more years to explore all that MIT […]
Best burgers and convos at BBC
The first friend I made in grad school doesn’t go to MIT. We didn’t even meet in Cambridge. Josh and I met at a chemistry grad school visit weekend at Princeton. We instantly clicked not only over our obvious shared interest in chemistry, but also a strong passion for teaching. I spent a good chunk […]
Making the switch
A year and a half into my master’s program, I decided to change labs. This may not sound as terrifying, but it means jumping into an ocean of uncertainty. Unlike many PhD programs at MIT, my master’s program doesn’t have the luxury of lab rotations with secure funding from the department. This means that the […]
Life at MIT could be stressful, but not for you!
Stress is one of the common issues that every grad student experiences. Experiments or simulations don’t work most of the time, and the relationships with advisors/lab mates/friends might have their ups and downs. We all know the feeling of getting closer to a deadline and not having enough data to present/submit. Being a graduate student […]
Pass the class — get a tat
Of all the injustices committed by well-intentioned cartographers, the one dealt to Antarctica is one of the most common and, from the point of view of this glaciologist, the worst. Picture Antarctica: do you see a wide, skinny strip at the bottom of the map, like this? The Robinson projection, which was used by National […]
So… you were accidentally admitted to MIT
I’m going to let you in on a secret: I’m a total imposter. I was admitted to MIT even though I’m not nearly as smart, driven, or successful as any of my peers. I can only tell you this now because I’ve passed my qualifying exams, so they can’t kick me out now. Although I […]
It’s not just about the degree
The beginning of grad school coincided with a lot of life changes. Grad school was one of them. Moving from Europe to the US was certainly another. However, the biggest life change operated silently, gradually and almost took me by surprise: I became an adult. But importantly, I learned, not without difficulties, how to become […]
What’s your grocery strategy?
Good food has long been my main vice. Before moving to Cambridge, I lived in DC and loved taking advantage of the diverse food scene. My Sunday ritual was going to the farmers market, heading to Whole Foods, and then coming home to cook for the afternoon. I knew once I was on a graduate […]
Getting into gear
Living in the south of the US for most of my life, where the distance between locations of interest are large and biking infrastructure is almost non-existent, biking as a primary form of transportation never seemed like a serious option. Moving to Boston, I knew I wouldn’t be able to bring my car which I […]
How to walk (or bike, or bus) a mile in my shoes
According to Apple Maps, my apartment is exactly one mile from the entrance of MIT’s campus. I just moved to Boston last August and was able to find a great place in the neighborhood known as “Cambridgeport.” I love this area. It’s quiet, close to a Trader Joe’s, and there is a freedom to how […]
In defense of the MBTA
Trash littered across the floor. Stifling, oppressive heat in a poorly lit space. Loud screeching. The smell of burning… I don’t even know. No, I’m not at a damp college party. I’m in a T station. Man, I love the T. And I mean it. Let me explain why. One, my research revolves around combating […]
Changing your habits one sunrise at a time
In my third year of graduate school, I decided to become a morning person. I had fallen into a group of friends who regularly got up at ungodly times of the day to go on various wilderness adventures, like climbing and skiing. Since I wasn’t getting up early on weekdays, my morning wakeup times would […]
Get out of the lab, get on Twitter
As any millennial, I spend a lot of time on social media. Facebook is my go-to place for cute animal videos or life updates from baby boomer relatives. Instagram is how I stay posted on what my friends, favorite celebrities, and social media influencers are up to. Every once in a while, you might even […]
*Actually* looking forward to my commute
Remember when iPods first became popular in the early 2000s and included an innocuous purple icon for the “Podcasts” app that hardly anyone paid attention to? Flash forward to 2019, when podcasts experienced a large resurgence of popularity, with nearly 32% of the US population listening to podcasts monthly, and 22% listening weekly. The podcast […]
Mental Health Matters: Issue #2
This week we are publishing a second issue on mental health, with our first issue released in February 2020. In these difficult times for all of us, we believe that it’s especially important to know that it is okay to reach out for help and support – whether to a trusted family member, good friend, […]
Ask and you shall receive
It was my first semester of grad school, and I was curled up in a ball on my dorm room bed. I was experiencing a distinct mixture of flu-like symptoms and crushing dread. It felt like the world was ending, even though from a rational place I knew that it definitely wasn’t. From my bed, […]
