Registration

Failure to complete registration by the end of the second week of the term will result in the loss of student status, and for international students, the loss of their visa status. As determined by the Department Committee on Graduate Students, and consistent with the policy of the MIT Registrar, a Course 4 graduate student who has not registered by the Add Date (end of fifth week) of an academic term will not be permitted to register at all in that term.

The Department will disallow access to departmental space and resources and will cancel that student's departmental employment, if any, after the fifth week of the term. No retroactive academic credit or retroactive payment will be awarded for departmental work done in the term in which the student is barred from registration.

All students, graduate and undergraduate, must file a degree application at the start of the term in which they plan to graduate. This is done online at WebSIS. Applications for advanced degrees must be submitted with working thesis titles. The deadline for finalizing the title falls near the end of term. For specifics, consult the Academic Calendar.

Undergraduates must ensure that all General Institute Requirements (GIRs) as well as departmental requirements have been satisfied by the end of the term in which they intend to graduate. The website for graduating students contains a complete checklist and calendar of deadlines. Students who have questions regarding their eligibility to graduate may contact their advisor or the degree administrator.

Petitions are required when:

• a student wants to add or drop a subject after the Institute deadline
• to correct errors in registration after Add Date
• to change an Incomplete to a letter grade after the Add Date deadline (graduate students only)
• Complete an incomplete subject from a prior semester or year (graduate students only)
• Request approval for retroactive actions in unusual circumstances
• to apply for a dual degree

The petition process for graduate students and undergraduate students is different:

• Undergraduate students will need to submit a Committee on Academic Performance (CAP) petition form for all reasons except application for a double major. The application to pursue a double major should be submitted to the Committee on Curricula (COC).
• Graduate students complete the Graduate Student Petition. Completed petitions should be submitted to Headquarters, 7-337, for directions on processing.

Download the Curriculum Petition Form

Download the OGE Petition

As prerequisite for registration, each graduate student who has indicated that English is not his or her first language must take the English Evaluation Test (EET). The test is a requirement of the Graduate School; it is a diagnostic test and is given before the fall and spring terms. The EET is a three-hour test consisting of listening, writing, and reading components, supplemented by an individual conference for each student with an English Language Studies (ELS) staff or faculty member. It is required even if the IELTS or TOEFL has been taken and passed with an acceptable score.  Results will help students, advisors, and the Department to assess what skills, if any, are needed to review in order to benefit most fully from MIT. The students and advisors will receive the results via email before Registration Day. A student receives their results as recommendations from the ELS faculty; however, these recommended courses are required by the degree program, and faculty advisors may not waive these courses for their advisees. 

Generally those who score significantly above 600 (250/computer-based; 100/internet-based) on the TOEFL require minimal work in English language writing skills. Those who score in the low 600s usually require additional help in grammar and writing skills.

Students may not defer registration in any English grammar review subject. They should take the courses within their first term or year. The most common results from the EET for Architecture students are to take the following two courses, and they must be taken in sequence:

• 21W.219 "Foundations of Academic and Professional Writing"
  • To be completed in the first term, for a letter grade only.
• 21W.227 "Advanced Workshop in Writing for Social Sciences & Architecture"
  • To be completed in the second term; may be taken as optional P/D/F grading, but not as Listener status.

Registration in required ELS subjects should be completed by the end of the first year. Registration in 21W.227, the advanced level writing for social scientists and architects subject, should be completed prior to Thesis registration.

Required English subjects do not count for unit credit toward any degree in the Department of Architecture; grades received in English subjects do, however, appear on the students' records. To this end the Architecture faculty have worked with the ELS faculty to allow for only 21W.227 to be completed under the optional P/D/F grading status. 

Consultation with ELS Instructors

Instructors in the English Language Studies Program will be available for consultation on Registration Day. Instructors are:

• Jane Dunphy, Director 14N-312, (617) 253-3069, dunphy@mit.edu
• A.C. Kemp 14N-228, (617) 253-4747, ackemp@mit.edu
• Eric Grunwald 14N-236, (617) 235-2676, egrunwald@mit.edu

All international students are required to be registered for a full-time course load, as defined by the institute as 36 units. The only allowed exceptions to this policy include the following:

• A student in their final term, who has met all program requirements except for thesis.
• A student is making satisfactory progress* towards their degree and is engaged in a TA or RA position for the duration of the term which is at least equal to the number of weekly hours otherwise spent on coursework. 

When an exception is requested, the student must be registered for a minimum of 24 units. Requests must be submitted to the Academic Administrators (arch@mit.edu) in advance of the term.

*Satisfactory progress toward the degree program is defined as the student completing all program requirements on or before their anticipated degree date, as set when they are admitted to the program.

Students may find one of the following course planner apps (which have been built out over the years by enterprising students) useful in planning out their academic schedule. Faculty advisors and Academic Administrators do not have access to view your plans on these apps, so please plan on sharing with your faculty advisor when you meet to discuss your registration plans each term. The apps are most useful for undergraduate programs, but do include graduate courses as well. Please be sure to reference graduate degree requirements available here: https://architecture.mit.edu/graduate-programs 

Firehose (https://firehose.guide/) – plan for the upcoming term only in a schedule view, and filter by GIRs, number of units, undergrad or grad level, or other filters. Can be exported to Google calendar. 

Courseroad (https://courseroad.mit.edu/) – planning broken down by term and year, making it possible to build plans for your program duration. Degree program information only included for undergrad programs, but useable by grads as well. Includes filters for GIRs, HASS, CIs, undergrad or grad level, number of units, etc. 

Fireroad (https://fireroad.mit.edu/) – essentially combines the above resources to make a mobile product with the best of both worlds. Degree program information only included for undergrad programs, but useable by grads as well. Available only as an app (Apple & Android). 

MIT Course Picker (https://picker.mit.edu/) – built out of a partnership between institute DLCs. It includes both undergrad and course level courses,  integrates with CourseRoad, and can be exported to Google. Does not have a filter for the current term, but easier to view only course 4 classes. 

Students may begin the cross-registration process at Harvard using the early add/drop forms (which establishes the registration on the Harvard side), but may fully submit them (in order for the Harvard course to show on your MIT status of registration) only after registering at MIT. The student goes to MIT's online add/drop application and uses the EARLY ADD/DROP form.  In the add section, enter a search term or Harvard subject number in the "Add Harvard Subject" field. Once the dropdown display populates, select the desired subject and proceed with the usual add subject process.

Clicking the "Submit for Approval" button will automatically send the information to Harvard when the instructor will approve. Once the approval is given, the information is sent back to MIT and your advisor will receive notification to approve the add request in the MIT add/drop system. Once the approval is given, the student will need to submit the approved Harvard add to the MIT Registrar the same as for any other add request.

Full-time MIT sophomores, juniors, seniors may not cross-register for classes at the Harvard Business School, Harvard Extension School, or Harvard Law School.

MIT undergraduate students are able to cross-register at Wellesley College during the fall and spring terms only.

Undergraduate students are only allowed to register for one subject per term at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. All subjects are graded pass/fail and cannot be used to fulfill Institute, department or minor requirements.

Cross-Registration Guidelines for Massachusetts College of Art and Design and can be found on the Art, Culture and Technology program's website (forms available there).

Students should submit a proposal to the supervisor that includes:

• A statement of the intellectual goal of the project
• An explanation of the relation of the proposed endeavor to the student’s overall educational goal
• A plan for approaching the intellectual problem 
• A statement of the expected deliverables and their evaluation 
• A statement of the amount of time to be expended in the effort (a timetable of deliverables)

Before registering for an independent study subject, a student must obtain an appropriate subject number from the degree administrator in the department’s headquarters (Room 7-337) using an Independent Study Project Form (save to computer or device before completing form  — file is a fillable PDF). The subject must be added to the student’s registration using the online Add/Drop application.

The following information is required to complete the form:

• Student’s name, department of major, MIT ID number and e-mail address 
• Subject level (graduate or undergraduate) 
• Grading system (grade or pass/fail, to be determined by the supervisor) 
• Credit units to be earned, based on the duration and effort to be expended (generally 6, 9 or 12) 
• A proposal 
• Signature of project supervisor

Pay close attention to your Status of Registration posted on WebSIS after the second week. Notify the degree administrators if you find errors or have questions.

Previous Terms:  

• Follow the specific guidance under the individual program area below (reach out to the Grad Admin for the program that you’re interested in pursuing for more information) to either apply to the program, find a faculty member in the secondary department to be a thesis member, or complete other steps needed to qualify for a dual degree.  

• Begin taking courses in the secondary program, provided you do not jeopardize your progress towards graduation for your primary degree.  

Penultimate term to graduation*: After your dual degree materials are approved by both the home and secondary departments, you will be directed to complete the OGE petition, which both degree administrators sign. The First Friday (Registration Deadline) of your penultimate term is the deadline to submit the OGE General Petition to register the dual degree. An approved coursework plan is required to be submitted along with the petition. (See sample coursework plans & refer to information in FAQs below.) Ideally, you are able to confirm dual degree status in time to join orientation events prior to your fall semester.

This deadline is non-negotiable. Failure to meet this deadline will result in the denial of your OGE petition by Architecture.  

*Your penultimate term to graduation is based on your original expected graduation date. If an extension is later requested for completion of your dual degree, that does not change the deadline for your OGE petition to register the dual degree.  

Final term:  

• Finish all remaining coursework for both degree programs 

• Thesis submission: submitted to and approved by Architecture first. Architecture sends to the secondary DLC for review after Architecture’s approval or directs the student to submit to the secondary program’s thesis portal for review. Dual degree students must adhere to the home department’s deadlines.  

• Thesis approval: approved by thesis (co-)advisor(s) & thesis grade submitted**.  

• Graduation from both degrees. Dual degree students who opt in for digital diplomas receive separate digital diploma for each degree, and because the digital diplomas run in batches, it's normal for them to be issued at different times. 

**In the situation where the student is writing two theses, the two thesis grades will be averaged together for one final, collective grade for 4.THG. 

To apply for the MSRED program, you must apply through their full admissions process. The tuition rate for the MSRED program is 10% higher than the MIT Standard Tuition rate.

October 2024 clarification: Students admitted to the MSRED Program as a dual degree from another program will be responsible for the difference in tuition and any amount not covered by their original funding, regardless of whether you are registered as “Primary/Home” or "Secondary” for any given term. This means Architecture students who are admitted into the MSRED dual degree pathway will be responsible for the difference between MIT premium tuition and the Architecture student's financial aid package.

If students are registered for dual degree including MSRED over the summer, the premium charges nullify the summer tuition subsidy, and students are required to pay the premium charges, regardless of which program is listed as the primary program.  

MSRED Thesis Prep may be waived if student takes elsewhere; approval should be discussed alongside submitting a coursework plan for home and secondary department approval. Cross registration (11.246/4.246) is allowed.

Admission to the SMEECS dual degree is an internal process and does not require going through EECS’ full admission process. However, there are still significant hurdles to overcome, and we advise you to begin working towards these early in your career here. EECS updated their requirements October 2024, please see details here: https://www.eecs.mit.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/EECS-Dual-Degree-Petitioning-Process-10.2.2024.pdf 

Recommended steps: 

1. Take EECS courses

   1. Note only coursework that earns a grade of B or higher will count towards the SMEECS (if you obtain a B-, however, that course may count towards your Architecture coursework requirements). 

   2. 48 of the 66 credits necessary for the SMEECS must be in technical courses. Please reach out to EECS’ degree administrator for confirmation of the qualifying courses. 

2. Find a faculty member in EECS willing to be a thesis committee member (this may be either a co-thesis advisor OR reader). This EECS faculty member is primarily responsible for the following:  

   1. Signing off on your dual thesis petition 

   2. Approving your EECS coursework plan (more on this below)  

   3. Reading and providing grading feedback on your thesis document 

Note: This is usually the hardest piece, since EECS faculty tend to be in high demand. We highly recommend having conversations about your proposed work with EECS faculty members as soon as you are able to get this process started, as we have encountered many students who completed all courses and other necessary items but were unable to earn this degree because they could not get a thesis committee member from EECS. Starting with the instructors you have already taken classes from or with whom you hope to take coursework is a better option than "cold calling" via email.  

3. Professional Perspective Proposal 

   1. Your coursework plan must indicate which term you will register for the 1-credit Professional Perspective.  

   2. Please provide a short paragraph indicating the semester and format for your Professional Perspective. If you choose the colloquia option, please identify the colloquia or (if it is too far in the future) give specifics you will be looking into. Once you have attended the third of the three presentations, you will need to send EECS 1–2 paragraphs total, summarizing each talk and what was gained in terms of experience related to your EECS degree. This must be submitted no later than the end of finals for the semester you are enrolled in PPR.

4. Submit completed materials for approval by August 1 for the fall term or January 1 for the spring term of your penultimate term.  

   1. Updated CV 

   2. Student Grade Report indicating B or higher for EECS graduate-level coursework completed to date  

   3. Dual SMArchS-COMP/SMEECS coursework plan pdf 

   4. Dual SMArchS-COMP/SMEECS thesis proposal indicating how the two degrees would inform each other via the thesis work 

   5. Two short essays regarding your research activities and goals; and your academic and intellectual journey 

   6. Professional Perspective proposal pdf  

   7. Name and email address of EECS thesis committee member  

   8. Recommendation letter from your thesis advisor (this is emailed directly to your home department degree administrator) 

To apply for the MCP program, you must apply through the full admissions process. Once admitted, you will still go through the process outlined above to register the dual degree with the institute. Special circumstances for dual degree students in the MCP program are outlined below.  

Students typically take about 14 subjects. Students may be able to test out of certain MCP courses. Testing happens at the end of summer and IAP. If students test out, they are required to take the units. MCP Practicum may be waived if a student has studio background approval and should be discussed alongside submitting a coursework plan for home and secondary department approval. 

Financial aid, including stipends and TA eligibility, matches the terms a dual Architecture-DUSP or DUSP-Architecture student is registered with each department. A dual degree student’s registration in one department or the other reflects the beginning of each curriculum.

Extensions will be considered only under the following circumstances and at most for one additional term: 

• A student in their primary degree program needs a summer extension to complete their thesis. The thesis advisor and committee support the decision and will be available to conduct a final review and approve the thesis book during the summer months. The student will then be on the September degree list.

• A fully approved dual degree candidate (all materials have been submitted to OGE and approved) requires an additional term to complete course requirements. The thesis advisor and committee support the decision, and the student has found funding from outside of the Department of Architecture (minimum 50% TA or RAship from another DLC). The student understands that the Department of Architecture will not be able to provide any additional tuition or stipend support, either through fellowship or student job appointments.  

• A fully approved dual degree candidate (all materials have been submitted to OGE and approved) requires an additional term to complete course requirements. The thesis advisor and committee support the decision, and the student is able to show personal or family bank statements showing that they are able to self-fund 100% of the costs* of the extension. Please make an appointment with the department administrators to review your financial records ahead of the extension application deadline. The student understands that the Department of Architecture will not be able to provide any additional tuition or stipend support, either through fellowship or student job appointments. Students in this category will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and are not guaranteed to be approved for an extension.    

*Costs are determined by the Cost of Attendance, set by Student Financial Services. Costs for one term are one-half the 9-month Cost. 

Students requiring an extension of one term must apply for the extension by ADD Date of their final term, based on their original expected graduation term. Please complete the Extension Agreement and return it to Architecture administrators before the deadline. 

1. Can I get additional funding for a dual degree? 

   1. Other than DUSP’s MCP program, which provides 2 additional semesters as a dual degree student’s secondary department, no other degree programs at MIT currently provide additional financial aid. Architecture is unable to provide additional funding beyond what is described in your Architecture admissions letter. 

2. Can I extend my time at MIT? 

   1. Summer extension: For students on the May degree list who receive thesis advisor approval, Architecture will assess moving to the September degree upon receipt of the Degree Date Extension Agreement with thesis advisor(s) esignature. If your thesis advisor(s) approved the extension, you would still present in some form in May. You would not be eligible to walk until the following academic year’s May commencement. 

   2. Single-semester extension: For an approved dual degree student to be assessed for a single-semester extension, the following steps are needed: 

      1. Fill out and submit the Degree Date Extension Agreement with thesis advisor(s) e-signature and have your financial documentation reviewed by Architecture Grad Admin no later than Add Date of your final term based on your original expected date of graduation. 

         1. Single-semester extension funding options for Architecture’s approval:  

            1. Non-Architecture TAship of at least 50% 

            2. RAship of at least 50% (Architecture or elsewhere) 

         2. Architecture mirror’s ISO’s requirements for showing funding, so please use SFS’s 9-month graduate cost of attendance to calculate how much funding you need to show. If you have a 50% appointment for the additional semester, you will need to show the difference. 

         3. If your funding source changes from approved self-funding to an alternate source (i.e., RA/TAship) at a later date, you do not need to resubmit your Degree Date Extension request. 

         4. Hourly work will not qualify for single-semester extension funding approval. 

      2. If a dual student cannot show proof of funding or receive thesis advisor approval by the form's deadline, Architecture will not approve the extension. The student will be expected to graduate on the original timeline, even if this means they do not receive the secondary degree. 

      3. Outside the dual pathway laid out for MArch-MCP detailed on the OGE website here, the maximum allowance for extension is one additional term for students enrolled in a dual degree program. 

3. How do I build my coursework plan? 

   1. Talk with your advisor! 

   2. You may not "double dip;" i.e., a single class can only count towards one degree or the other degree (if a class has multiple course numbers, however, it does not matter which course number you register for).  

   3. You must fulfill the requirements for each degree with unique credits. 

      1. i.e., if you have 96 credits (before thesis) for a SMArchS degree and 66 credits (before thesis) for an SM degree, your coursework plan should have a minimum of 162 credits clearly allotted to one or the other degree. 

      2. i.e., if you need 48 “technical units” for the proposed SM degree and 3 Option Studios for the MArch degree, these individual requirements must be identified. 

   4. All coursework must be taken fully graded (no optional P/D/F grading, unless the subject is only offered this way).        

   5. Coursework must be graduate-level to count towards any MIT graduate degree.  

   6. Use the course titles from your Grade Report, as this is what is used to confirm you for graduation, but you may add subtitles for your own tracking.  

   7. Within each semester, list the courses in order of ascending numerical order (this mirrors your Grade Report).  

4. What is the deadline to be approved as a dual degree student? 

   1. A student must be accepted into both programs (or, in the case of SMEECS, have their materials approved by both Architecture and EECS) and have an approved OGE petition no later than the first Friday of the student’s penultimate term (i.e., the Registration Deadline or the first Friday in September for May graduate candidates). 

   2. For the graduation date to be pushed from the original date outlined in an Architecture student’s Architecture offer of admission letter, one of the following must occur: 

      1. A non-MCP student receives Architecture approval for a single semester extension after having a Degree Date Extension Agreement e-signed and accompanying financial documentation reviewed. 

      2. A dual MCP student receives both home and secondary department approval for a graduation date in line with the offers of admission from each department alongside the student’s approved coursework plan. 

   3. If a student interested in a dual degree program has not secured the necessary approvals from both departments prior to the first Friday of their penultimate term, Architecture will not approve the dual degree petition.

5. When can my coursework plan be reviewed?

   1. Given the extremely high level of interest in dual degrees, we are unable to approve dual degree coursework plans until one or the other of the following conditions are met: 

      1. A student is accepted into the secondary department through the annual admissions cycle. 

      2. A student interested in petitioning for the SMEECS dual degree is submitting all materials for review by the home department. See the new guidelines from EECS, released October 2024 (note the Graduate Counselor is the equivalent of your Architecture advisor): https://www.eecs.mit.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/EECS-Dual-Degree-Petitioning-Process-10.2.2024.pdf 

   2. Please don't expect immediate turnaround for review on coursework plan/paperwork, as time is extremely limited. It's essential that you plan your submission well in advance if you wish to make it through the process successfully. 

6. If I am an approved dual degree candidate, do I get 1 or 2 diplomas? 

   1. Dual degree students receive 2 diplomas. Dual degree students who opt in for digital diplomas receive separate digital diploma for each degree. Note that because the digital diplomas are run in batches, it's normal for degrees from different degree programs to be issued at different times. 

7. Can I graduate on one degree list before the other? 

   1. You graduate from both degrees simultaneously. 

8. Can I write either 1 or 2 theses for my dual degree? 

   1. Depending on the DLCI, each degree program might have restrictions on whether 1 thesis combining the degrees or 2 theses, one for each degree, is permitted. At this time, Architecture supports either but strongly encourages dual degree students to write a single thesis. If the secondary department’s degree program only allows a single thesis (for example, SMEECS), the dual degree student must abide by this requirement. 

9. My secondary department has thesis document deadlines that are after Architecture’s deadlines. When do I need to turn my document in? 

   1. Please rely on the archthesis website for Department deadlines for when your thesis book is due. The Institute deadlines on the Registrar’s website only indicate when the Department (or, in the case of dual degrees, both Departments) must have cleared your thesis book, and this process takes significant time. Dual degree students must abide by the home department’s deadlines, so Architecture’s deadlines apply.  

10. Are dual degrees allowed between institutions? 

    1. At this time, dual degrees at MIT are only between DLCIs. Dual degrees between Harvard and MIT, for example, are not supported by Architecture. 

11. May I complete a dual degree as an Architecture PhD student?  

    1. Dual degrees are only masters + masters. If a doctoral student would like to pursue a master’s degree, this is not considered a dual degree. This student must be enrolled in two separate degree programs and is required to submit a full master’s thesis in addition to a PhD dissertation. While the research might be related, the thesis projects and documents should be distinct. At this time, Architecture does not offer a masters-in-passing for PhD students. 

• MArch coursework template
• SMArchS AD coursework template
• SMArchS AKPIA coursework template
• SMArchS BT coursework template
• SMArchS COMP coursework template
• SMArchS HTC coursework template
• SMArchS URB coursework template
• SMBT coursework template