Daniel Barkowitz | October 03, 2008
"The Human Factor -- Kickoff of the Campaign For Students"
Today marks the kickoff of the Institute's Campaign for Students, a $500M effort to support students at MIT. Titled "The Human Factor", the campaign spotlights how students make a difference to MIT and how MIT makes a difference in students' lives.
The four focal points of the campaign are: undergraduate financial aid, the undergraduate commons, graduate student support and student life. More information on each priority is available through the links above, and the campaign website, at http://thehumanfactor.mit.edu/ has some great student and alumni profiles whcih truly provide a personal face on the campaign.
Given the economic climate, you might think that we are in a particularly difficult time to be starting a fundraising campaign, but I would answer that the difficult economic situation makes the timing even more important. MIT has as one of its bedrock principles that students who show the ability to succeed at MIT should be able to attend regardless of their personal economic situation. This part of the campaign is so vital; the generosity of our alumni and friends is what provides us the opportunity to make the MIT dream a reality for those who would not otherwise be able to afford it.
Absolutely worth watching is the preview video telling student stories and really putting a personal face on the campaign and telling the inspiring story that is MIT. The campaign is also looking for your MIT story about your experiences at MIT to perhaps be used as part of the campaign.
Feel free to post your MIT story here as well. What does "The Human Factor" mean to you?
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The author has filed this entry in the "Financial Aid" section; check it out for further reading on this topic. |
Responses To This Entry:
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First!
Posted by: Ehsan on October 3, 2008 06:27 PM
Second... : (
Posted by: Anonymous on October 3, 2008 06:29 PM
First material post.
This was rather interesting, really. Most people, from what I can tell, don't think about what it's actually like to be a student at MIT, but just focus on that it's one of the top schools in the nation. I really found this interesting, because this is one of the things that's really important. It also touched on something I always liked about MIT: The fact that what you do there actually matters. Your research can have very real effects on the world.
"Feel free to post your MIT story here as well." Well, unless you count the fact that I'm currently applying there, I don't have one yet. I look forward to reading the stories of others, though.
Posted by: Dane on October 3, 2008 07:37 PM
The preview video is a must see. Not only will it inspire people to donate to the fundraising campaign, it will also encourage perspective students to apply. When I first watched the video earlier today from the homepage, I thought it was going to be a recruiting tool for perspective students as there was no explanation of its purpose. It is wonderfully done and fantastically inspiring! BRAVO!!!
Posted by: anonymous on October 3, 2008 07:55 PM
Uhh... you need some spam protection on this blog...
Made an math joke
IN: FactorInteger[24];
OUT: {2^3,3,Human}
humm, maybe it's better if it's factor some polynomial...
Posted by: Mgccl on October 3, 2008 08:17 PM
"What does "The Human Factor" mean to you?"
It means those bright, awesome, psychedelic, color-changing lights they set up along the corridor in the Z Center. Hope they're permanent additions! :p
Posted by: Anonymous on October 3, 2008 09:35 PM
That video makes me want to go to MIT even more. As if that was possible. I think I may explode with anticipation.
Posted by: Anonymous on October 3, 2008 10:29 PM
Ah, so that's why I was just phone-harassed by a student who would.not.take.no.for.an.answer. So I hung up.
Posted by: alum on October 5, 2008 09:50 PM
As a current student of MIT, there are several reasons why I find The Human Factor to be misleading and over-simplified.
I came to MIT because I wanted to be in an environment where innovation and advancement are the daily pursuits of the entire community. Many of the students here have the self-motivation and the intellectual drive to get a good education at any university or college in the nation. The advantage of MIT is not just the benefits and opportunities that arise through financial means, such as funding for labs, research opportunities, and a myriad of student groups.
The true advantage of MIT is the mentality of the community, and its collective inertia to push the boundaries of human existence with every individual creative thought that we are able to muse upon. As a senior, my understanding of this community is that we are here to reach the leading edges of our respective fields as quickly and as knowledgeably as we can. Why is an education at MIT compared to drinking from a fire hose? As soon as we arrive, we are expected to engage in a feeding frenzy of learning in order to lay down a foundation upon which we can innovate as soon as possible. This is why I am here, and not elsewhere.
I think there is a severe misunderstanding on the part of the administration as to what actions and decisions will help the student body. I also don't feel that the videos on the site present an accurate image of what the students at MIT are really like, or what being at MIT is really like. In many ways, I'm sad at how disillusioned I can feel by the reality of MIT, but I have hope that the administration will listen to student input and modify their efforts accordingly.
Posted by: Danbee on October 18, 2008 08:55 PM
