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Information For Freshmen Interested in EECS
General information:
What is Electrical
Engineering (EE) in MIT like?
What is Computer Science
(CS) in MIT like?
What is 6-1, 6-2 and
6-3?
What is
6-A?
What is
6-P?
What is
HKN?
How do I
join HKN?
Who
is Anne Hunter? Who is Vera Sayzew?
What is the "underground
guide"?
Questions asked by many freshman:
Should I major in
6-1? 6-2? or 6-3?
I do not have
programming experience. Should I declare course 6-3 as my
major?
I
don’t know anything about EE and CS. Should I declare course 6 as my
major?
What
are the course 6 classes that I can take during my freshman
year?
Should
I take 6.001 in my freshman Fall term?
Should I take 6.002 in
my freshman Fall term?
Can I take 6.001 &
6.002 together in a term? I am on pass/fail anyway.
I know there are lots
of work if I take 6.001 and 6.002 together, but I am willing to spend
all my time to study for these classes. Can I take them together in a
term?
How do
I find out the expected workload of class 6.xxx?
I love EE/CS but I am
not doing well in the course 6 classes. What should I do?
I am not sure what
course 6 classes to take. Whom should I ask?
Which are the easy
course 6 classes? Which are the course 6 classes that give lots of
A?
Can I
complete the Bachelor and Master program in 4 years?
The answers
Q: What is Electrical Engineering (EE) in MIT
like?
A: Please refer to: http://www-eecs.mit.edu/ug/primer.html#ee
Q: What is Computer Science (CS) in MIT like?
A: Please refer to: http://www-eecs.mit.edu/ug/primer.html#cs
Q: What is 6-1, 6-2 and 6-3?
A: Please refer to: http://www-eecs.mit.edu/ug/brief-guide.html#bach
Q: What is 6-A?
A: 6-A is the internship program of course 6. See http://www-eecs.mit.edu/via/index.html
Q: What is 6-P?
A: 6-P is the MEng (Master of Engineering) program of course 6. See http://www-eecs.mit.edu/ug/brief-guide.html#mast
Q:What is HKN?
A: HKN (Eta Kappa Nu) is the national honor society for EECS. See http://hkn.mit.edu/info-about.html
Q: How do I join HKN?
A: We will notify you when you qualify for a membership in HKN. See http://hkn.mit.edu/info-about.html
Q: Who is Anne Hunter?
A: Anne Hunter is our friendly Administrator of the course VI undergraduate and MEng program. She knows almost anything about course 6, and will patiently answer any course 6 questions that you might have. Her email is anneh@eecs.mit.edu.
Vera Sayzew (vera@mit.edu) is the co-administrator, with special responsibility for the EECS class 2003. She will be able to answer all your questions about course VI too.
Q: What is the "underground guide"?
A: Towards the end of the term, HKN will ask students to evaluate the course 6 classes that they are taking. The results are compiled into a "HKN Course 6 Underground Guide". It contains the survey results of every course 6 class. The online version is available at http://hkn.mit.edu/ug.html. A hard copy can be obtained at 38-476, the EECS Undergrad office.
Q: Should I major in 6-1? 6-2? or 6-3?
A: You should major what you like most. Doing a major that you do not have interest in will be quite painful. Generally, you should major in 6-1 if you like 6.002 and 6.070, 6-3 if you like 6.001 and 6.042, and 6-2 if you like all of these classes. If you do not find these any of these classes interesting, you probably should not major in course 6.
It is more important to figure out whether or not course 6 in general is the right major for you, since changing between the submajors (6-1, 6-2, 6-3) is relatively easy.
Q: I do not have programming experience. Should I declare course 6-3 as my major?
A: You will know the answer after taking 6.001 and/or 1.00 and/or 10.001.
Many people find that they like programming after actually doing it. So having background certainly helps because you will experience first-hand whether you like or dislike programming. Yet, one should be open-minded and not set his major before trying the 00 classes (6.001, 6.002, 6.003, 6.004.)
Q: I don’t know anything about EE and CS. Should I declare course 6 as my major?
A: Although some knowledge in EECS would help, you are not expected to know anything about EECS. After all, we come to MIT to learn, not to show what we have learned before we come. However, there are two pre-requisites to doing well in course 6: interest, and willing to work hard.
Many people have a good idea of what they want to learn by then end of the freshman year. But it is generally a good idea to try a couple of courses from all the different majors that one is interested in. The fall of the sophomore year is often a suitable time for experimentation. Keep in mind that MIT requires you to declare your major at the end of Sophomore year but you still can change your major after that. Although changing your major will put you at a slight disadvantage, learning what you really like and what you think is important to you in much more important than simply finishing MIT early or quickly. You will definitely get more out of it.
Q: What are the course 6 classes that I can take during my freshman year?
A: You can take any course 6 classes as long as you satisfy the pre-requisite, and you can handle the workload of the 4-5 classes that you are taking. In general freshmen take a subset of 6.001, 6.002, 6.041, 6.042, 6.070 and 6.071.
Q: Should I take 6.001 in my freshman Fall term?
A: We suggest that you take 6.001 in your freshman Fall term only if you have 18.01 & 8.01 credits, and have some programming experience. Although you do not need 18.01 & 8.01 for 6.001, they are the pre-req of many other classes like 18.02, 18.03, 8.02, which are the pre-req for a whole list of classes like 6.002. Completing these basic classes give you more choices of classes in the future.
Q: Should I take 6.002 in my freshman term?
A: Because the pre-req of 6.002 is 8.02 and 18.03, you should not take 6.002 in your freshman term unless you have credits for these prerequisites. Notice that you must have credits for both 8.02 and 18.03 before taking 6.002.
Q: Can I take 6.001 & 6.002 together in a term? I am on pass/fail anyway.
A: Theoretically you could take these classes together, but it would mean a huge amount of work. Although freshmen are on pass/fail, barely passing these 2 classes will ensure you a tough time ahead because many course 6 classes require a thorough understanding of 6.001 and/or 6.002 to do well.
Q: I know there will be lots of work if I take 6.001 and 6.002 together, but I am willing to spend all my time to study for these classes. Can I take them together in a term?
A: Yes you can, but we do not encourage you to do so. The pass/fail system for freshman is intended to encourage you to explore other majors that you have never thought considered (do you know that you might like architecture? Economics? Nuclear engineering?). Explore the wonderful activities offered by MIT, your living group, and Boston. Spending all your freshman time studying would defeat the purpose of the pass/fail system.
Enjoy your freshman year! Work but yet have fun and explore! That's the idea. Working hard will be come as naturally as eating when you are upperclassman/woman.
The department does not expect students taking these two classes together, so they may have quizzes or major assignments due on the same day. These two classes are hard, and require your best shot - don't take them together!
Q: How do I find out the expected workload of class 6.xxx?
A: Check the HKN Course 6 underground guide here: http://hkn.mit.edu/ug.html
Q: I love EE/CS but I am not doing well in the course 6 classes. What should I do?
A: You can join the tutoring program offered by HKN. It is free! See http://hkn.mit.edu/act-tutoring.html
When you find your self in trouble, do not wait, get help immediately. Some people think that it is okay to be in trouble for a couple of topics and ace the other topics. But this is not the case. Most final exams are comprehensive and the professors expect you to be able to combine ideas and concepts from all the entire class. Get help immediately when you are in trouble: there are TAs and tutoring programs.
Q: I am not sure what course 6 classes to take. Whom should I ask?
A: You can join the Big Sib program offered by HKN. A big course 6 brother/sister will share his/her experience in course 6 with you. See http://hkn.mit.edu/act-bigsibprogram.html
Q: Which are the easy course 6 classes? Which are the course 6 classes that give lots of A?
A: Unfortunately there are no really easy course 6 classes. There are only hard, or very hard classes. Some classes do give lots of A, to the extent that you can skip most lectures, do a few assignments and get an A. However, getting an A does not mean that you know the material of that class, and any course 6 alumni can ensure you that it is what you know that is important, not what class you get an A.
In short, we suggest you to concentrate in learning the materials of the class, and you will naturally do well if you understand the materials.
Q: Can I complete the Bachelor and Master program in 4 years?
A: With careful planning, it is possible to do so. However you would be mostly taking course 6 classes that satisfy the degree requirements, and this will restrict your education experience in MIT. If you have to select your electives, grad classes and thesis just because they are relatively easy and fast, haven't you sacrificed way too much?
