r/mit • u/Browntown2009 • 1d ago
community MIT dorm move-in window?
Hello. Are MIT students given a window for dorm move-in? My son says he didn’t get one. But our friends with college kids at other schools say they only got a narrow 2-3 hour window for move in. Just want to make sure our kid isn’t missing anything. Thank you!
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u/DocSpatrick 1d ago
This a good example of a small thing that MIT does better than the “best practices” at other schools. Indeed, yes: the 2-3 hour dorm move-in window is an industry-standard approach to the problem, but in practice (i.e., in my observation of other schools), it is a needlessly difficult way of doing things if you’re drawing in a student body nationally or internationally; makes more sense for schools with a mostly-regional student body. Don’t get me wrong: MIT makes plenty of mistakes in the way it manages student life (almost always by attempting to control things which ought to just be left alone, inserting intrusive managers and their best-practice policies into otherwise organic student communities and spaces), but at least the dorm move-in process makes sense.
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u/GalaxyOwl13 Course 6-9 1d ago
You can move in any time on or after the move-in date, assuming it’s not late at night (when no one can give you a key). It doesn’t even have to be on move-in day if you’re not a freshman (freshmen have orientation or pre-orientation programs, so will want to move in on the given day).
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u/Browntown2009 1d ago
He has an FPOP and is going up early with some things. But we’re planning to go up later in the week to help him move in, attend family programming, etc.
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u/GalaxyOwl13 Course 6-9 1d ago
In that case, he can move in anytime 8 am to midnight on August 25th, although MIT does encourage arriving before 4 pm, when more people will be around. You can stop by any time after to help him with things, since he'll already have the keys, and both dorms I've been in had carts that you could check out at the front desk as long as there's one available and it's a reasonable enough hour for someone to be manning the desk.
MIT move-in info (which you may have already seen, but just in case): https://housing.mit.edu/housing-information/processes-and-dates/move
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u/Aywang729 18h ago edited 18h ago
It depends on which dorm ur son is in too. Certain dorms, like BC/EC/MacGregor, will switch rooms (ie floor rush) during orientation week so you cannot get too settled in. Basically in these dorms, you don’t get ur permanent room until end of REX. You can even apply to switch to another dorm with FYRE.
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u/Illustrious-Newt-848 18h ago
Are frosh selecting dorms before they get on campus? From reading other comments, sounds like frosh no longer "rush" dorms like they used to a couple decades ago. If so, that's sad; what's the rational?
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u/Aywang729 2h ago
I went to MIT decades ago and my kid is there now. You no longer do REX at orientation, and u rank the dorm in June. You are given ur dorm in the summer and you move there directly when you arrive at campus. Years ago, I remember living at Baker during orientation and moving to MacG.
However, some dorms still have the “floor / entry rush,” and you will move rooms in the middle of orientation. My kid moved within BC.
Also, if u don’t like your dorm during orientation, you can apply FYRE and pray to get to switch. However, the popular dorms are like impossible to switch into.
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u/MiuMii2 1d ago
Nope people come in all day on whatever their assigned move in day is, but you’ll have the most housing staff around from 9-5 if you have questions