Faculty Advising

When students enter the Department of Mechanical Engineering, they are assigned a faculty academic advisor. The principal role of the academic advisor is to help individual students plan their academic programs in ways that are consistent with the degree requirements and their career objectives. The faculty academic advisor is only one of many advising resources.

Advising Resources

  1. Faculty Academic Advisor (class selection, career/networking advice, grad school advice, if you are having trouble with academics or have issues affecting academics)
  2. Peer Advising (selecting MechE as a major, 2 vs 2-A vs 2-OE, class selection – particularly outside the department, peer opinions and experiences): http://adviseme.mit.edu
  3. UROP supervisors (research interests, grad school, career/networking advice)
  4. Instructors (class selection for restricted electives/engineering topics, research interests)
  5. The Undergraduate Office, Room 1-110 (degree audits, class selection, navigating bureaucracy, difficulty with coursework, personal or medical issue referrals, or if you don’t know where to go)
  6. Student Support Services (personal or medical issues, testing accommodations, general advice and support)

The Department strongly recommends that students reach out to all advising options available and cultivate an advising network. Students interested in grad school will need 3 letters of recommendation. Students interested in going into industry may find that faculty have different relationships with industry and different perspectives regarding career advice, or different networking opportunities. Your advisor is not an expert on everything, so it is perfectly fine for you to seek advice from other faculty members as well.

It’s important to speak to your assigned faculty academic advisor regarding all issues pertaining to academic performance, even if they stem from a personal or medical issue. Your faculty academic advisor is your designated advocate to the Committee on Academic Performance, and to the Department, so it is important to keep your advisor updated should you experience difficulty, even if you have reached out to another member of your advising network.

It is up to you to make the most of your advising experience. Take the initiative!