How to Get Into MIT: Essays and Strategies that Worked
/How hard is it to get into MIT? Learn about MIT’s application process and successful approaches to MIT’s short-answer essay questions—which are not on the Common App—to improve your child’s odds of being accepted
LEARN HOW TO GET INTO MIT
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Part 1: Introduction
If your child has the grades and tests scores to be competitive for the best Ivy League schools and Ivy Plus schools (e.g., Caltech, Stanford) and is interested in pursuing a career in a STEM-related field (science, technology, engineering, and math), you may want to encourage them to apply to one of the most prestigious Ivy Plus schools: MIT.
MIT—the Massachusetts Institute of Technology—is among the most prestigious, famous, and rigorous universities in the world (yes, in the same tier as its neighbor across the river, Harvard). In this science and technology-crazed world, a degree from MIT is sure to impress employers. Moreover, the years spent on MIT’s futuristic campus in historic Cambridge, MA can change the course of your child’s life.
At MIT, your child can conduct research in the lab where the human genome was sequenced, intern at a tech company like Google in nearby Kendall Square, collaborate with scientists on cutting-edge research in aeronautical engineering (actual rocket science), pursue an interest in art and technology at the famous MIT design lab, and even take a creative writing course with a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist.
MIT students spend their summers pursuing research and prestigious internships thanks to MIT’s network and generous financial support for research grants. Some students may spend the summer interning in Silicon Valley at Facebook or on Wall Street at a top firm. They might even conduct research at NASA or design an innovative suspended bridge in Portugal.
Because of MIT’s name recognition, students will stand out to recruiters in a variety of professions.
And life after MIT? Alumni attend prestigious graduate schools, travel the world with Fulbright Fellowships, invent lucrative smartphone apps in Silicon Valley, design skyscrapers, enter politics, and much more—both in and out of STEM fields. In addition to a strong network that includes Nobel Laureates, astronauts, and CEOs, a degree from MIT might make people believe that your child is, well, a genius.
From years of helping students navigate MIT’s application and essay questions, we’ve put together key tips for how to get into MIT, including how your child can write standout essays to earn a place there.
MIT ranking
MIT routinely ranks as one of the best universities in the U.S.:
Forbes: 4
Niche: 3
U.S. News & World Report: 2
Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education: 3
Where is MIT?
MIT is located in Cambridge, MA, just a short walk away from Boston via the Longfellow Bridge or the Harvard Bridge. Take the Boston T (the subway) from Kendall Square to get to Boston in under 10 minutes. Cambridge’s population is approximately 121,000—a small yet densely populated city that is accessible to, but independent from, Boston. 4.9 million people live in the Boston metropolitan area.
MIT setting
Composed of distinct “squares,” Cambridge is a suburban area that offers tasty food, vibrant cafes, bookstores, record stores, vintage clothing shops, and much more.
MIT student population
Undergraduate students: 4,657
Graduate students: 7,201
MIT acceptance rate
Here are the admissions statistics for the class of 2027:
Applications: 26,914
Acceptances: 1,291
Matriculants: 1,092
Acceptance rate: 4.8%
MIT tuition and scholarships
In 2023–2024, MIT projects the total cost of attendance (i.e., tuition, room, board, and fees) to be $82,730.
MIT is committed to covering 100 percent of demonstrated need, and 99 percent of MIT students receive some form of financial aid. For students with household incomes (including assets) of $140,000 or less, tuition is covered by the MIT scholarship fund. In 2021–2022, 58 percent of students received need-based MIT scholarships with the average amount being $53,997.
Among students receiving any form of financial aid, the average amount paid by families is currently $17,442 per year. Eight in ten MIT students graduate free of debt.
Who gets into MIT?
MIT emphasizes its holistic admissions process and does not publish the average GPA or class rank of its incoming class, although they do publish average test scores. Below, we’ve compiled academic stats and demographic information for the class of 2027 to help you assess your child’s odds of getting in:
MIT average ACT score:
25th percentile: 34
75th percentile: 36
MIT average SAT Math score:
25th percentile: 780
75th percentile: 800
MIT average SAT ERW score:
25th percentile: 730
75th percentile: 780
International students: 10%
Public school attendees: 66%
Asian Americans make up 40% of the class. 38% are Caucasian, 16% are Hispanic or Latinx, 15% are Black or African American, 2% are American Indian or Alaskan Native, and 1% are Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.
Most MIT students major in STEM-related fields. Among those who don’t, architecture, urban planning, and management (at MIT Sloan) are popular choices. The interdisciplinary program “Humanities and Engineering” is a favorite among students interested in engineering, literature, history, and the arts.
Many students pursue minors in non-STEM fields, such as writing, political science, and comparative media studies.
(Suggested reading: How to Succeed as an MIT Premed)
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Part 2: MIT requirements for admission
MIT academic requirements
Like its peer institutions in the Ivy League and the Ivy Plus schools, MIT looks for ambitious students who demonstrate academic excellence and passion, especially in science and technology.
To impress MIT, your child will need to demonstrate great potential in the STEM fields. MIT admissions officers are looking for students who took advantage of the educational opportunities that they were afforded in high school. If your child attended a high school with a rigorous IB or AP curriculum, MIT will look for a successful track record in those courses.
If your child’s school doesn’t have the means or resources to challenge them sufficiently, you should help your child seek outside STEM material and coursework, through community college, online, or summer programs. It’s unlikely that someone without a fairly advanced background in at least chemistry, physics, biology, and calculus stands a chance at MIT admissions. Your child should take AP Calculus AB or BC (or the equivalent) by their senior year, at the latest.
MIT does not specify requirements for what students completed in high school, but to prepare for their rigorous curriculum, the MIT admissions team recommends the following:
One year of high school physics
One year of high school chemistry
One year of high school biology
Math, through calculus
Two years of a foreign language
Four years of English
Two years of history and/or social sciences
But grades aren’t enough. MIT isn’t just looking to admit people who can ace science tests. Those people aren’t the ones who need access to cutting edge neuroscience labs, funding to conduct research abroad, and resources for launching startups. MIT wants to admit students who will utilize the university’s unparalleled resources. They are looking for students who take risks when designing robots and who take the initiative to create their own smartphone apps.
They want to educate future leaders in STEM, meaning they’re also looking for intellectual creativity and curiosity, often demonstrated through extracurricular activities.
Has your child, for instance, taught themselves to code if their school didn’t offer computer science? Is she an advanced tinkerer who’s created a device to make solar energy more efficient in the school cafeteria? Are they a national robotics champion or a competitor in the Intel Science Fair? Has he excelled in his school’s math team by participating in competitions at the state or national level?
Here are the specifics.
MIT application requirements
MIT does not use Common App, Coalition App, or the Universal College Application. Instead, MIT uses its own application system and process, so your child will need to write new essays or reuse excerpts from the Common App Essay or UC essays.
Here are the MIT application components:
MIT Application, including short answer essay questions
2 teacher letters of recommendation (1 from a STEM teacher and 1 from a humanities/social science/language teacher)
Secondary School Report including transcripts, a counselor evaluation, and school profile
Optional: Your child may submit a third, supplemental evaluation. While most applicants do not submit this optional evaluation, it may be a good addition to your child’s application if he or she participated in an impressive internship, did research, or succeeded in an extracurricular activity.
Optional: Creative portfolio
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Part 3: Applying to MIT early action vs. regular decision
Your child can apply early to MIT by November 1st and receive a decision of either accepted, deferred, or denied, by mid-December.
MIT follows an early action model (in contrast to early decision), which means that your child does not need to attend MIT if they are accepted at this stage. Your child can apply to other universities and make their final decision in April.
If your child receives a deferral, then they will re-enter the regular admissions pool and find out on in mid-March whether or not they have been accepted, waitlisted, or rejected.
Unlike Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, or Yale, MIT does not have restrictive or single-choice early action. MIT simply asks that students respect other colleges’ restrictive early action policies, so your child cannot apply to MIT early action if they are applying restrictive or single-choice early action elsewhere.
However, your child can apply to schools with non-restrictive early action, like Georgetown’s early action program, or to early decision programs, such as Columbia’s early decision program. If your child is accepted to the early decision program, they must withdraw their application from MIT.
Your child can also apply regular decision, by January 4th.
How do you know if your child should apply to MIT early?
MIT early action might be the right choice for your child:
If MIT is one of their top choices
If there is no other school they’d like to apply to via early decision or restrictive early action
If your child is applying to their top choice early decision and is willing to withdraw their MIT application upon acceptance to the early decision school.
If their test scores and grades are strong by the end of junior year
MIT admits about half of their class early and half of their class in the regular decision pool. However, the regular pool is more competitive because it includes deferred applicants and regular decision applicants.
Most importantly: MIT doesn’t offer preference to those who apply early.
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Part 4: 2023–2024 MIT supplemental essays (examples included)
(Note: While this section covers MIT’s admissions essays specifically, we encourage you to view additional successful college essay examples.)
MIT is posing the following short essay questions for the 2023–2024 application cycle:
What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you. (200 words or fewer)
We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (200 words or fewer)
How has the world you come from—including your opportunities, experiences, and challenges—shaped your dreams and aspirations? (200 words)
MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together. (250 words)
How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it? (250 words)
A final, open-ended additional information text box, where your child can tell the Admissions Committee anything they need to know or explain some confusing aspect of their application (note: this is neither an essay nor required). Your child should treat this box like the Common App Additional Information Section.
(Suggested reading: The Ultimate Guide to Supplemental College Application Essays)
MIT essay #1
What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you.
Like other “Why us?” essays, this prompt offers students an opportunity to show why they are excited about MIT. While students are not required to declare a major, this prompt offers a chance to show MIT that your child has done their homework on their unique course offerings.
Daniel, who has conducted research on how mosquitoes transmit viruses at the university in his hometown, wants to use this essay as an opportunity to discuss how his autoimmune disorder influenced his career ambitions.
Ever since I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder at thirteen, I have been passionate about genetics. My hours spent in the doctor’s office taught me how vital it is to develop better affordable diagnostic technologies. To pursue this interest, I’d like to major in Course 7, which offers courses in human diseases, neurobiology, evolutionary biology, and other topics related to genetics. The field of genetics is going to explode with life-improving discoveries, and my dream is to make a difference in the world through research such as that being done by Eric Lander into the human genome.
Here’s how Daniel captured the attention of the Admissions Committee:
He connects his interest in MIT’s academics to his personal story. Daniel does not simply say that he wants to major in biology and become a doctor. Instead, he draws on personal experiences to identify a problem in the medical field that requires innovative research in science and technology.
He demonstrates an understanding of MIT’s unique course offerings. Unlike the students who responded by saying that they wish to major in math, physics, chemistry, or biology, Daniel chooses an academic program that is unique to MIT. He even lists the course offerings that excite him the most. Of course, if your child does wish to major in the more traditional sciences, they can still pull off what Daniel does by connecting to a particular branch or application of those sciences.
He states his goals for the future. Beyond simply stating what he hopes to accomplish at MIT, Daniel expresses his goals for the future. As a bonus, Daniel demonstrates an interest in a specific faculty member in his field of interest and an ongoing project in which he may participate.
MIT essay #2
We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (200 words)
MIT essay #3
How has the world you come from—including your opportunities, experiences, and challenges—shaped your dreams and aspirations? (200 words)
MIT essay #4
MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together. (250 words)
MIT essay #5
How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it? (250 words)
Gain instant access to essay examples for every supplemental essay prompt from the top universities and BS/MD programs in the United States.
Final thoughts
Like other Ivies and Ivy Plus schools, MIT is a reach for even the most brilliant students. Success in AP and IB science and math courses and top grades are the norm in the matriculating class. By making unique accomplishments in extracurricular activities or by developing a project that demonstrates passion, your child will be well on their way to exhibiting the qualities that the MIT admissions committee looks for in their applicants.
About the Author
Dr. Shirag Shemmassian is the Founder of Shemmassian Academic Consulting and one of the world's foremost experts on college admissions. For nearly 20 years, he and his team have helped thousands of students get into top programs like Harvard, Stanford, and MIT using his exclusive approach.
THERE'S NO REASON TO STRUGGLE THROUGH THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS PROCESS ALONE, ESPECIALLY WITH SO MUCH ON THE LINE. SCHEDULE YOUR COMPLIMENTARY CONSULTATION TO ENSURE YOU LEAVE NOTHING TO CHANCE.