Chris Peterson, Director of Special Projects at MIT Admissions and Student Financial Services, discusses what MIT looks for when reviewing college applications and how students can create an MIT-friendly application.

If you’re planning your student’s entire educational path around an admission to MIT, you might be making a grave mistake — but not for the obvious reason.

It isn’t that an MIT acceptance letter is an unreasonable aspiration. But entry into a single college, however prestigious the institution, isn’t a desirable educational objective by itself when compared with the nurturing of curiosity and passion in your student.

‍Chris Peterson, Director of Special Projects at MIT Admissions and Student Financial Services, joins the podcast to discuss what MIT looks for when they're reviewing college applications, how the pandemic has affected their decision process, and next-steps advice for having an MIT-friendly application.

Dreaming of MIT Admission: What Does It Take?

Straight from the mind of a director at the MIT admission department, Chris says these are three qualities that admissions officers look for. 

1. Academics

Admissions officers want to know that applicants are ready for the fast-paced core curriculum at MIT, as well as the educational autonomy that MIT students enjoy after that initial hurdle.

Even anthropology majors have to take two semesters of physics. 

_{2. Noncognitive Indicators}

MIT admissions also looks for noncognitive indicators, which refers to skills like curiosity, initiative, resilience, the ability to accept feedback, adaptability, and more. MIT students have inquisitive, hungry minds.

Art of Problem Solving trains students in a foundational problem-solving skill set that includes resilience, creativity, autonomy, perseverance, and confidence – skills that can be applied to any subset of life. Learn more about our courses. 

3. Team Fit

MIT admissions isn’t just about your student. The admissions department is trying to build a team of students with different skills, attributes, ways of thinking, and ways of doing. They’re trying to build a cohort who will succeed together at challenging tasks. 

“It is in some fundamental and unavoidable way about other people,” Chris says. This holistic aspect of admissions means that an acceptance letter isn’t just about you and your scores but the entire corpus of applicants and how they fit together. 

Reinstating Admissions Tests 

The pandemic challenged MIT admissions to use different criteria for determining a “right-fit” student, Chris says. Admissions officers now have to weigh different schooling systems, including students who switched to online, hybrid, or other types of nontraditional education for a year and then switched back to traditional school; or those students who exited traditional education altogether.

For now, MIT is reinstating its requirement for standardized test scores. This decision was driven partly by in-house research about admissions equity. 

“We don't need SAT and ACT scores for everybody, but we do need SAT and ACT scores for those students who might not have other ways to demonstrate that preparation,” Chris says. Students who have the least educational capital, resources, or advantages rely on the ability to demonstrate preparation for MIT through standardized test scores.

While many other schools are keeping tests optional, MIT believes it’s both competitive and fair to keep them for everyone.

“We commit to a full and fair review for all of those students, keeping in mind the North Star of demonstrating preparation for MIT,” Chris says.

Getting Students MIT-Ready

“Every parent and student needs to do what is the right thing for them,” Chris says. He also points out that an entire educational trajectory should not be constructed around admission into MIT or any other specific university. Instead, finding a student’s passion matters more. 

“Let them pursue their own unique interests and aptitudes as far as it will take them,” Chris says. “That will make them the most distinguished standout college applicant that they can be.” 

It could also save students and families from regret. Only 4% of applicants are accepted at MIT. The disappointment a student may feel at receiving a rejection letter can adversely impact their attitude toward higher education unless they are centered in a healthy understanding of other paths to success. 

Embrace Math and Science

A couple of things that families could do early to identify an interest in an MIT education is to establish a foundation in math and science, adding some exposure to calculus, physics, biology, and chemistry. 

If quantitative and analytical tasks make a student’s heart sink, that’s a strong indicator that MIT might spark despair instead of joy. Just as a student’s worth is more than their test scores, it's also more than their degree. 

Action Steps for Parents

1 - Know the MIT Curriculum

Not only must students be able to handle the math, science, and communication-intensive courses at MIT, but they should also enjoy those types of subjects. 

2 - Embrace Educational Passion

“MIT exists as a place to nurture the unique interests and aptitudes of students who could not otherwise find a place where they could pursue those things to the fullest,” Chris says, paraphrasing the 1949 committee that formed the modern MIT education.

Parents who nurture students to consider and pursue their educational passion will be providing them with the best educational philosophy, which incidentally aligns with that of MIT.

3 - Nurture Curiosity

Let your student explore your local library. Sign them up for a variety of extracurriculars for exposure to different ways of thinking. Show them that math can be beautiful and immensely creative.

If your student just won’t stop talking about something, cultivate it and direct it in a variety of areas. 

Don’t drill, drill, drill. Rather, keep your student’s authentic curiosity alive.

Guest Links

• Learn more about Chris Peterson.
• Check out the financial resources for MIT students at MIT Admissions and Student Financial Services.

Recommended Resources

• Read about those students who were denied by MIT and went on to find other paths to success. 
• Read the March 2022 announcement “We are reinstating our SAT/ACT requirement for future admissions cycles.”

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