Application Process

Application Timeline 2024-2025

• September 15: Application opens
• Throughout the Fall: TPP hosts informational webinars for prospective students
  • Attendees must register in advance through the  events calendar
• December 15, 11:59 p.m. ET: Application Deadline
• Early January: Faculty review of applications
• Mid-March: Admissions decisions sent to applicants
• April: Accepted students begin search for Research Assistantships

Application Components

• Materials submitted via online application
  • Résumé/CV
  • Cover Letter (500 words or less)
  • Three Letters of Recommendation
  • Statement of Objectives (500 to 750 words)
  • Response to Supplemental Question (500 words or less)
  • $90 Application Fee (due at time of submission)
    • Fee waivers can be requested from MIT’s Office of Graduate Education for US permanent residents, or international applicants attending US colleges and universities for whom this fee creates financial hardship
    • Additional criteria for the waiver are outlined on OGE’s website.
• Materials sent directly to MIT
  • Official Transcripts 
    • Official transcripts are sent from your university to the admissions coordinator at the address provided below.
    • Some schools use a clearinghouse such as Parchment or National Clearinghouse to send transcripts electronically. Electronic transcripts should be emailed to ebyrne@mit.edu.
  • Required Tests
    • GRE: General test
      • optional for 2025 cycle
  • International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
    • All applicants whose first language is not English must demonstrate that their command of English is sufficient to participate fully in the regular research and academic activities of a TPP student. They can do this by:
    • Completing their entire secondary education (e.g., high-school), or four consecutive years of post-secondary education (university, college, junior college, etc.), at an accredited school where the official language of instruction is exclusively English.
    • Taking the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam, academic format. The minimum IELTS score expected is 7.5 taken within the last two years. It is possible to arrange accommodations for test-takers with documented disabilities or health needs.
    • The IELTS indicator is available in China.
    • Login to the website of IELTS test center where you took the test. Then find Apply for additional TRFs at the left-most side of your result page and fill out application forms online. From the dropdown menu, choose MIT Graduate Admissions. You may email ebyrne@mit.edu your TRF number, and the admission coordinator can verify your IELTS score.
    • Taking the Cambridge English Qualification, C1 Advanced Exam. The minimum score expected is 191.
  • Send to:
    MIT Technology and Policy Program
    77 Massachusetts Avenue, E17-373
    Cambridge, MA 02139-4307

Application Support 

Prospective students with questions about the application or application process should contact the admissions coordinator Elena Byrne (ebyrne@mit.edu).

Talk to Current Students

Applicants can fill out this form to ask current students about their experiences in the TPP program. Your questions will not influence your application. Students should not be contacted with questions about the application or to assess an applicant’s qualifications for the program.