TPP addresses societal challenges through research and education at the intersection of technology and policy. Our goal is to mobilize science and engineering to inform intelligent, responsible strategies and policies to benefit communities from local to global.
The Technology and Policy Program (TPP) prepares and educates leaders to address important technological issues confronting society.
Through our two-year Master of Science Program, we prepare students for leadership in government and industry. Degree requirements include graduate-level coursework in engineering, policy, economics and law, and an interdisciplinary thesis focused on a technology policy issue.
TPP students interested in continuing their academic careers at the doctoral level have continued their research in PhD programs across the Institute. Of particular relevance is the IDSS PhD Program in Social and Engineering About 5-6 advanced graduate students per year have typically entered the PhD programs at MIT. These doctoral graduates work in academia, industry, and government.
TPP is directed by Professor Munther Dahleh, of MIT’s Institute for Data, Systems, and Society and the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. TPP’s Founding Chairman is Professor Richard de Neufville.
The MIT Technology and Policy Program is part of a significant development in engineering education. Comparable programs are Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University, Systems Engineering and Policy Analysis at the Delft University of Technology, and Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University.
The TPP curriculum was designed for completion over the course of two years. Thesis research and writing must count for at least 24 units of the student’s final-year course load. This requirement makes graduating in less than two years very difficult, unless a student has already started thesis research through an MIT program that might be applicable to TPP.
The TPP thesis is a major professional work that builds upon the student’s concentration. It integrates the technology and policy of an issue, placing the technical problem in context and providing leadership regarding what can and ought to be done.
Thesis work normally spreads over two semesters. The student prepares a thesis proposal in the first semester, submitting it for review by the TPP Thesis Committee no later than the start of the student’s final semester at MIT, during which the student does the intensive work on the thesis.
Each student is also required to take a coherent sequence of three graduate-level subjects in technology and policy/social sciences, each valued at a minimum of 9 units. Students are generally free to choose policy courses that best integrate with their individual programs. However, the engineering systems concentration requires approval from both the student’s research supervisor and the TPP administration.
Student concentration areas can range from typical engineering disciplines such as Telecom Networks, Transportation and the Environment, and Materials Engineering to more creative and unique concentration areas such as Electric Energy in Developing Nations, Biotechnology, and Technology Education. Most graduate level subjects offered at MIT can fulfill an engineering systems concentration, given permission of the student’s supervisor and the TPP administration. For a full listing of MIT course offerings, please review the MIT Course Bulletin.
Applicants to the Technology and Policy Program are expected have a strong technical background, typically including an undergraduate degree in engineering or science. They must also be prepared to take advanced subjects in economics, political science and management. When admitting students, we look for:
We strive to recruit a diverse incoming class of students with these three characteristics. Most (but not all) successful candidates have one or more years of work experience after their undergraduate degree. In recent years, half the students have come from North America, and the rest about equally from Europe, Asia/Africa, and Latin America.
We measure applicants/ academic preparation through university grades and the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE). We pay particular attention to recent academic performance and grades in subjects relevant to technology and policy. Successful applicants from North American universities generally have a B+ average or better; regional differences in grading systems are taken into account for international applicants. Strong candidates for the program typically score in the top 10 percent of all three GRE areas (verbal, quantitative, and analytic writing).
Applicants who are not native speakers of English must also present the results of their International English Language Testing System test (IELTS), taken within the last two years. Our minimum score on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) academic format is 7.5.
While these are general guidelines, we are looking for the best possible students, and we evaluate each applicant individually.
We evaluate prospective students’ interest in technology and policy through their prior experience and their personal statements.
Practical experience in understanding how technology issues are applied in real-world contexts is important to students’ success in the program. Generally, this is shown by previous work or internship experience in government, nonprofit, or industry sectors.
TPP prepares students to combine excellence in a particular field of technological development (communications, energy, environment, computers, aerospace, etc.) with rigorous applied social science (economics, politics, law, etc.) We are particularly interested in hearing about the goals and career plans of applicants through their personal statements, and how the TPP program will fulfill their objectives.
We seek students who are prepared to work for the good of a larger community. Leadership experience is interpreted broadly – we would like to hear through your personal statement how you have influenced and inspired the people around you. We are especially interested in candidates who can be effective in motivating concern about issues, catalyzing coalitions to effect change, managing implementation of new policies.
Applications are accepted in December each year. Faculty review applications beginning in January, and candidates are generally sent offers of admission by mid- to late-February. Offers of financial assistance are normally made by the end of March. The incoming class begins in September.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), United States
TPP addresses societal challenges through research and education at the intersection of technology and policy. Our goal is to mobilize science and engineering to inform intelligent, responsible strategies and policies to benefit communities from local to global.
The Technology and Policy Program (TPP) prepares and educates leaders to address important technological issues confronting society.
Through our two-year Master of Science Program, we prepare students for leadership in government and industry. Degree requirements include graduate-level coursework in engineering, policy, economics and law, and an interdisciplinary thesis focused on a technology policy issue.
TPP students interested in continuing their academic careers at the doctoral level have continued their research in PhD programs across the Institute. Of particular relevance is the IDSS PhD Program in Social and Engineering About 5-6 advanced graduate students per year have typically entered the PhD programs at MIT. These doctoral graduates work in academia, industry, and government.
TPP is directed by Professor Munther Dahleh, of MIT’s Institute for Data, Systems, and Society and the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. TPP’s Founding Chairman is Professor Richard de Neufville.
The MIT Technology and Policy Program is part of a significant development in engineering education. Comparable programs are Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University, Systems Engineering and Policy Analysis at the Delft University of Technology, and Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University.
The TPP curriculum was designed for completion over the course of two years. Thesis research and writing must count for at least 24 units of the student’s final-year course load. This requirement makes graduating in less than two years very difficult, unless a student has already started thesis research through an MIT program that might be applicable to TPP.
The TPP thesis is a major professional work that builds upon the student’s concentration. It integrates the technology and policy of an issue, placing the technical problem in context and providing leadership regarding what can and ought to be done.
Thesis work normally spreads over two semesters. The student prepares a thesis proposal in the first semester, submitting it for review by the TPP Thesis Committee no later than the start of the student’s final semester at MIT, during which the student does the intensive work on the thesis.
Each student is also required to take a coherent sequence of three graduate-level subjects in technology and policy/social sciences, each valued at a minimum of 9 units. Students are generally free to choose policy courses that best integrate with their individual programs. However, the engineering systems concentration requires approval from both the student’s research supervisor and the TPP administration.
Student concentration areas can range from typical engineering disciplines such as Telecom Networks, Transportation and the Environment, and Materials Engineering to more creative and unique concentration areas such as Electric Energy in Developing Nations, Biotechnology, and Technology Education. Most graduate level subjects offered at MIT can fulfill an engineering systems concentration, given permission of the student’s supervisor and the TPP administration. For a full listing of MIT course offerings, please review the MIT Course Bulletin.
Applicants to the Technology and Policy Program are expected have a strong technical background, typically including an undergraduate degree in engineering or science. They must also be prepared to take advanced subjects in economics, political science and management. When admitting students, we look for:
We strive to recruit a diverse incoming class of students with these three characteristics. Most (but not all) successful candidates have one or more years of work experience after their undergraduate degree. In recent years, half the students have come from North America, and the rest about equally from Europe, Asia/Africa, and Latin America.
We measure applicants/ academic preparation through university grades and the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE). We pay particular attention to recent academic performance and grades in subjects relevant to technology and policy. Successful applicants from North American universities generally have a B+ average or better; regional differences in grading systems are taken into account for international applicants. Strong candidates for the program typically score in the top 10 percent of all three GRE areas (verbal, quantitative, and analytic writing).
Applicants who are not native speakers of English must also present the results of their International English Language Testing System test (IELTS), taken within the last two years. Our minimum score on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) academic format is 7.5.
While these are general guidelines, we are looking for the best possible students, and we evaluate each applicant individually.
We evaluate prospective students’ interest in technology and policy through their prior experience and their personal statements.
Practical experience in understanding how technology issues are applied in real-world contexts is important to students’ success in the program. Generally, this is shown by previous work or internship experience in government, nonprofit, or industry sectors.
TPP prepares students to combine excellence in a particular field of technological development (communications, energy, environment, computers, aerospace, etc.) with rigorous applied social science (economics, politics, law, etc.) We are particularly interested in hearing about the goals and career plans of applicants through their personal statements, and how the TPP program will fulfill their objectives.
We seek students who are prepared to work for the good of a larger community. Leadership experience is interpreted broadly – we would like to hear through your personal statement how you have influenced and inspired the people around you. We are especially interested in candidates who can be effective in motivating concern about issues, catalyzing coalitions to effect change, managing implementation of new policies.
Applications are accepted in December each year. Faculty review applications beginning in January, and candidates are generally sent offers of admission by mid- to late-February. Offers of financial assistance are normally made by the end of March. The incoming class begins in September.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), United States
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