MIT overturns tradition with a bold move: Bravely change advisors, I will pay for the cost, and students are excited

Jin Lei from Aofei Temple
Quantum Bit Report | Public Account QbitAI

Mentor = boss.

It seems that this "equation" has been tacitly accepted by scientific research students since some time ago.

If your scientific research life is going well, it's fine. But if it's extremely painful, and you want to change your "boss" , it may not be that easy.

However, a plan announced by MIT recently has made students excited:

If you are not happy with your research, change your supervisor! I will give you money!

This domineering move to protect students has also attracted great attention from netizens.

It’s an awesome boost.

What does MIT's "transition funding" plan say?

The program was initiated by an MIT organization called RISE (Reject Injustice through Student Empowerment) .

It is not difficult to see from the name that what this organization wants to do is "reject injustice by empowering students."

The official move was characterized as an important development in the RISE movement and will be officially implemented on March 8 .

As for the reason for launching this plan, as mentioned just now, it is due to the "discordant" relationship between tutors and students, which affects students' scientific research life.

In an official statement, MIT also bluntly mentioned:

A mentor can make or break a student's career for any reason (or no reason at all) .

We believe that providing students with appropriate "transition funding" support can improve their current situation and achieve greater academic freedom.

Moreover, the "transition funding" plan was developed after repeated consultations and has been supported and affirmed by the MIT Dean and Provost.

RISE played an important role in promoting this plan and emphasized four basic core principles :

• Provide students with a wide range of qualifications and financial protection.

• Centralized project management through OGE.

• Non-funded accommodation is available.

• Work with the instructor in question to resolve the issue.
  

Of course, this program only applies to students who are in "unhealthy conditions", such as being abused, neglected or misguided by their tutors.

At the same time, the success of the "Transition Fund" program is also inseparable from the joint efforts of graduate students - more than 1,000 people signed it.

Together, they sent a very clear message: a healthier, more equitable MIT .

Why make such a plan?

Although we have just mentioned the reasons why MIT launched this program, what specifically did the students experience?

In a discussion on Reddit, an undergraduate student in materials science told his story:

Most of us were dissuaded from pursuing a PhD at MIT because so many people had very bad experiences there.

A common description is that many advisors tire their students out in order to prevent competition for scholarships.

The phenomenon of "discord with advisor" is not limited to MIT. For example, another netizen also expressed his cousin's bitterness:

My cousin was abused by his advisor at Caltech . Since he couldn't change labs, he had no other choice but to transfer schools.

It is a shame for top students to have such abusive and insulting mentors. This will ruin the future of science and research.

Of course, this phenomenon is also happening in our country and around us.

In 2019, a third-year graduate student fell from the rooftop of a five-story dormitory building.

According to the family members at the time, the student suffered long-term oppression from his tutor while studying. He was forced to call his tutor "dad", buy meals for him and clean the house for him, and was prevented from furthering his studies by him.

In the end, the student couldn't bear it anymore and chose to commit suicide.

In the same year, a domestic doctoral student also chose to end his life after his thesis was accepted at a top conference .

It is not difficult to see from his chat records and suicide note before his death that what overwhelmed him was the endless revision requirements and high-intensity scientific research pressure from his mentor:

"It's really hard to bear", "I really want to die from this change"

Such words frequently appear in their chats.

……

From abroad to at home, tragedies caused by "discord between teachers and students" continue to occur.

This time, MIT proposed a "transitional funding" plan from the students' perspective, which may help them gain some academic freedom.

But at the same time, amid the heated discussion, there is also another voice.

“Why not address the root of the problem?”

There are frequent conflicts between tutors and students. Why not solve the problem from the "root" of the tutor, but let the students make the choice?

This is another point that netizens pointed out sharply:

Why not just deal with the instructors who abuse their power?

This idea was also supported by others:

That's exactly what I wanted to know.

Many mentors and scholars have not received leadership (cultivation and education) training.

The problems between mentors and students cannot be resolved by a “single solution”.

While helping students out of trouble is one way, it is also very important to provide tutors with training in educating students as early as possible.

So back to the "transition funding" program launched by MIT, can it really help students achieve academic freedom?

A Reddit user gave his example.

There are similar programs in the schools where he chooses to study for a doctorate, and nearly 50% of the students there choose to adopt the program. However, this netizen said:

The school environment is still terrible.

In response, other netizens echoed:

Do you think it is a good thing that 50% of people adopt this plan?

Well, it seems that the conflict between mentors and students cannot be completely resolved by one or two policies or plans.

……

What do you think about this issue?

Reference Links:

[1]https://www.rise4mit.com/updates
[2]https://www.reddit.com/r/GradSchool/comments/loy63w/mit_to_offer_guaranteed_transitional_funding_for/
[3]https://twitter.com/syardi/status/1363213937416658944