NOTE: INFORMATION FOR ORIENTATION 2012 WILL BE POSTED AS IT BECOMES AVAILABLE
Welcome from the GSC President
Dear incoming graduate students,
On behalf of the graduate student body, I congratulate and welcome you to MIT!
As an incoming graduate student you are uniquely prepared and equally ready to embark on a rewarding journey in the intense laboratory of academic rigor, technical excellence, and world-class research. And, this journey will have a profound and lasting impact on you beyond your tenure at MIT.
Welcome from your Orientation Co-Chairs
Welcome to the unique and larger-than-life world that is MIT! Standing at the gates to your next phase of life and career, you are probably feeling a mix of excitement, pride and slight apprehension. As your Orientation Chairs, we are most excited to guide your transition from pre-MIT to MIT, and to make it as smooth as possible.
As one of the largest and most comprehensive graduate orientation programs in the US, we are here to facilitate the integration of incoming graduate students into the MIT community.
The orientation events are divided into three categories:
Work: "Know the institute" events will introduce you to the life of a graduate student at MIT.
- Grad School 101 and 102 will teach you everything you need to get started at MIT grad school.
- The Orientation Welcome Address 2011 features MIT President Susan Hockfield and Nobel Laureate Wolfgang Ketterle.
Play: "Know the people" events allow you to mingle with your fellow incoming students as well as upperclassmen.
- Enjoy a breezy fall evening dancing in the Boston Harbor with the Boston Harbor Cruise Party
- Exprience a classy reception with drinks and hors d'oeuvres at the Welcome Reception under the Dome
- Meet new friends at dance parties (SP, Ashdown, Edgerton) and barbecues (Ashdown, SP, Eastgate, Westgate).
- Come learn about the Boston Foodtruck culture at The Warehouse presents: Food Truck Food Court.
Live: "Know the city" events will acclimatize you you to the Greater Boston and New England Area
- Apple Picking Trip in a beautiful New England setting.
- Hiking trip at the white mountains in New Hampshire.
- See Boston from the top of the Prudential Center and enjoy some delicious New England ice cream afterwards.
- Venture Boston on land and in sea with the Boston "Duck" Bus/Boat Tour.
- Go on a Pub Crawl around the Cambridge area, starting at the Thirsty Ear at Ashdown.
Please note that there are numerous other exciting activities beyond those listed above. Please visit our Calendar for full listing and descriptions of events.
What are the ticketed events and how do I get tickets?
The ticketed events are: The Apple Picking Trip ($5 MIT), Prudential Skywalk + Ice cream ($5 MIT), Hiking Trip ($10 MIT, $15 Guest), Duck Tours ($8 MIT), Reception under the Dome ($7 MIT) and the Boston Harbor Cruise ($13 MIT, $16 Guest).
You can get tickets at the Information Booth in Lobby 10 on August 30th and 31st. You can buy one MIT ticket per event, or one MIT ticket and one guest ticket (paying the guest price).
What are the events requiring signup?
Volunteer day and Mentorship Mixer. Sign-up links will be emailed to ticketholders of the hiking trip. The LBGTQA dinner also requires RSVP to rainbowofficers@mit.edu.
Are you offering an airport shuttle this year?
Following mixed reviews with students and organizers, the Airport Shuttle program will be discontinued this year. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Can I get an electronic copy of the magazine that was sent to me via mail?
Sure, we have the Orientation Issue of The Graduate magazine available online here.
My flight is rescheduled due to the hurricane. Are you canceling or moving events, and do you have any plans for people unable to make the Orientation due to the hurricane?
The hurricane is predicted to hit around Aug 28th and 29th. With this, the events originally planned for Aug 28th have been rescheduled. The Thirsty Ear BBQ has been moved to Sep 5th, and the Ashdown Brunch will be moved to a new date pending finalization.
Grad School 101 and 102 will not be rescheduled. To accommodate for those unable to attend, we have made all of the essential materials and slides available via the GS101/102 webpage. Many GS101/102 sessions are being videotaped and will be available online.
It is a shame if rescheduled flights will force you to miss some of the other orientation events... Fortunately, Orientation will happen again in 2012, and you can plan to catch up on any events you missed by volunteering for the next orientation!
My question isn't answered here!
Please feel free to contact us regarding details of the Orientation. For further information, the Graduate Office staff and your departmental administrators can often be of help.
Special Thanks
The GSC Orientation 2011 is made possible only by the help of many enthusiastic volunteers and the financial backing of our sponsors.
Coordination
- Grad School 101 + 102: Kevin Kung, Bryan Owens and Mitali Thankor
- Reception Under the Dome: Bomy Lee Chung
- Boston Harbor Cruise: Alejandra Menchaca and Sergio Castellanos
- Prudential Skywalk + Icecream: Sabino Pietrangelo and Nicole Casasnovas
- Welcome Banquet: Neelkanth Manoj Bardhan
- International Mentorship Mixer: Hamed Alemohammad and Kevin Kung
- Families 101: Mia White
- Hiking Trip: Victor Wang and Ryan Cooper
- Volunteer Day: Yunna Sinskey and Greg Kuperman
- Grad Rat Wine and Cheese: Ahmed Helal and Katia Shtyrkova
- Pub Crawl: Kevin Cedrone
- Duck Tours: Alex Bruno and Daniel Day
- Food Court Food Truck: Jen Wilson and the Warehouse Orientation Committee
- Dorm Events: The Ashdown, Sidney Pacific, Tang, Eastgate, Westgate, Edgerton Orientation Committees, the Thirsty Ear and Muddy Charles Pubs
- Women's Events: Megan Brewster, Jean Yang, Kay Furman, Nancy Twu and the GWAMIT Orientation Committee
- LBGT Events: The LBGTQA Officers & Staff at the Rainbow Coffeehouse
Publicity
- T-Shirts: May Hwang, Allan Powell, Lorenna Buck and the COOP
- Posters and Tickets: Erioseto Hendranata
- Website: Amy Gao and Brian Keller
- The Graduate Magazine: Rudy Dieudonne
Thanks again to all the MIT Offices and Groups involved, including the ODGE, Grad Rat, MIT Spouses & Partners, Chaplains at MIT and the MIT Police.
Final thanks to the core GSC team: Imani Ivery, Cody Kamin, Ellan Spero, Alex Evans, Madalyn Berns, Sophie Ni, Aalap Dighe, Kuang Xu and Todd Schenk
Sponsors and Collaborators
