DMSE Application Assistance Program (DAAP)

The DMSE Graduate Admissions Committee enthusiastically supports the DMSE Application Assistance Program (DAAP). Our department is committed to advancing a respectful and caring community that enables all of our students to succeed at MIT. We value applicants who bring a diversity of thought and experience, and recognize that many of these applicants have not had the same support in the graduate admission process as other students. We are excited for DAAP to help fill that gap and have made ourselves available to the graduate student leaders and volunteers in support of DAAP.

—Jeffrey C. Grossman, Department Head & Morton and Claire Goulder and Family Professor in Environmental Systems, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering (DMSE) is committed to advancing a respectful and caring community that enables all of our students to succeed at MIT. We are looking for applicants who bring a diversity of thought and experience to our student body, including students from groups underrepresented in STEM, students with non-traditional academic backgrounds, and students from academic institutions which have not historically sent many students to MIT. We recognize that applicants receive disparate degrees of support during the graduate admission process and encourage graduate applicants with less support to use the DMSE Application Assistance Program (DAAP). Please consider before applying.

DAAP is a volunteer-based, student-run program that provides assistance to DMSE applicants from underrepresented groups. Applicants are paired with a graduate student who can answer questions about DMSE and MIT, provide feedback on materials to create a stronger application, and guide applicants through the DMSE application process. DAAP is supported by the DMSE Graduate Admissions Committee. DAAP mentors are trained by a faculty member on the Graduate Recruitment and Admissions Committee on DMSE's admissions criteria and on providing feedback for application materials. This support is by no means a guarantee of admission as the MIT DMSE admissions process is completely separate from DAAP. Participation in DAAP is not considered by the Graduate Admissions Committee during application evaluation.

DMSE is excited that you are considering us in your application process! The application to participate in DAAP for the 2023 application cycle is now open until Friday, November 4, 2022 at 11:59 PM EST before the December 1 DMSE application deadline. To join the program, please fill out a short application here. After we receive your application, we will contact you for more information and pair you with a volunteer graduate student mentor. You can email us with questions related to DAAP at dmse-daap@mit.edu. For questions about the DMSE graduate program in general you can email dmse-gradoffice@mit.edu.

Please note that DAAP is purely volunteer-based: graduate students are offering their time to support prospective applicants, and this support is not considered as part of the admission process. DAAP will accept requests until Friday, November 4, 2022 in order to provide assistance before the December 1, 2022 DMSE application deadline. We encourage applicants to connect with DAAP early, as we  as we pair mentors and mentees on a rolling basis and may not be able to guarantee a mentor match late in the application season.

Additional list of resources

  1. Tips and Tricks for completing the application (from DMSE Students)
  2. MIT Office of Graduate Education (OGE) Application Fee Waivers
  3. MIT Fall preview weekend programs for prospective applicants interested in graduate school. Programs offer exposure to the MIT campus and opportunities to interact with graduate students, staff, and faculty.
    1. MIT Access Program introduces talented undergraduates to the advantages of choosing a graduate career path at an institution that best meets each participant's individual needs.
  4. Summer research programs
    1. MIT-specific summer research programs
    2. Summer research program and internship database
  5. Preparation for graduate school
    1. MIT GradCatalyst webinar is an MIT student-led workshop that helps undergraduates plan their academic trajectories
    2. GEM Getting Ready for Advanced Degrees (GRAD) labs.
  6. Compiled list of graduate fellowships
  7. MIT Office of Minority Education resources