The study of foreign languages and literature provides valuable experience and a potential edge for future career development for our students.
Scientists and engineers function in a global market: they rely on primary sources published in other languages, attend international consortia, and often find themselves interacting across national, cultural, and linguistic borders. Government and industry often give preference to job applicants who are proficient in a foreign language. MIT students are encouraged to work and study abroad in conjunction with university, private, and public organizations.
The faculty of the FL&L Section, the language coordinators, and the Undergraduate Academic Administrator can provide assistance in choosing an appropriate program and granting transfer credit from overseas or domestic programs. MIT provides a unique perspective on foreign languages because of the opportunities available to integrate the study of natural languages with the latest technological advances in multimedia and interactive learning. FL&L-affiliated faculty are exploring and implementing methods in which multimedia technology can be used to make learning a foreign language a more authentic experience.
Although MIT is known throughout the world for its programs in science and engineering, MIT is also an institution where the humanities, arts, and social sciences play an integral role in the educational mission. Together, they help to make MIT much more than just an institute of technology.