[guest blog] y(I)APping by Fiona L. '27

This is a guest post by one of my friends, Heidi Z. ’27, one of the first friends I made here at MIT and my favorite “homegrown massachusettsian”. (shoutout DEAPS ’23!) As stated in this post, IAP is one of the most unique, liminal pockets of time at MIT, showing that a month can contain multitudes. I really hope you enjoy learning more about what a January at MIT can look like—I know I sure did :)

Hi, I’m Heidi Z. ‘27, a sophomore double majoring in 6 and 18⁠01 Computer science and mathematics, respectively. There are several 'flavors' of course 6 - I'm currently debating between 6-3 (computer science) and 6-4 (artificial intelligence). at MIT! In high school, I loved browsing the blogs and imagining a future in Cambridge—having the opportunity to come full circle is honestly surreal. My favorite blogs were always just about how MIT students spent their days in classes, clubs, or hobbies, so I figured I would share something similar about this past IAP⁠02 independent activities period! four weeks in January to do whatever :D !

You might wonder, how much can you really accomplish in IAP?—turns out, quite a lot! Of course, everyone spends it differently and this was just what I found to be the best for me. I spent my last IAP not doing much and ended up feeling pretty sluggish going into the spring semester, so I decided to change it up this year. In this post, I’ll first cover some of the things I did and then present some surprising reflections I had about the whole journey.

here is a little bit more about me!

free trip to india *⁠03 excluding labor costs (1/3 – 1/11)

This opportunity was actually organized by Harvard’s Science Olympiad club—high school SciOly was what introduced me to geology and earth science, so it was refreshing to take a break from math and CS to revisit that passion. Over the fall semester, we organized a two-stage exam for students across India, culminating in a five-day in-person camp for the top 100 competitors!

I flew into New Delhi with six other undergrads, none of us having been to India before. After two days of touring Delhi and Agra, we headed to the host university, living in dorms for a week while proctoring exams across five science disciplines and running hands-on workshops. As the resident earth scientist of the group, I wrote and proctored the earth science exam and taught workshops on climate change and rock/mineral identification. Earth science is often overshadowed by subjects like chemistry and biology, so I was pleased to see the students genuinely engaged in my workshops. I even gave away the majority of my mineral collection—seeing the students’ faces light up as they carried home a piece of vanadinite made it worth it 04 and I freed up space in my suitcase! .

end-of-camp party, jama mosque in delhi, background: yummy lunch

Besides interacting with students, I loved bonding with my fellow undergraduate mentors. Whether it was staying up late in our dorm room “working”, introducing Harvard students to MIT lingo, or enduring the horrors of Cat Mario⁠05 https://catmario.eu/ , I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to spend a week with in a foreign country. Turns out Harvard kids aren’t that peculiar! Some of them can be kind of okay…

mineral collection, taj mahal, monkey, lotus temple, background: spice market

i did not see the bean (1/12 – 1/16)

After my time in India, I landed in Chicago to visit my cousins and to attend an insight program at a quantitative finance company. These programs are great—they fly you out, give you a tour of the office, and introduce you to the industry. Sophomore year is a great time to explore and consider various careers, so attending events like this is really fun! Over the course of three days, we were introduced to both the trading and technology sectors of a quantitative finance company through simulations, chats with employees, and presentations/lectures. I especially loved shadowing traders and watching them work in real time.

schedule, color factory, fancy s’mores, hotel, dinner with cousins, background: willis tower view

What made this experience even better was that it was a women’s-only program, creating an incredibly supportive environment. I connected with some amazing women that I’ll hopefully get to meet again soon! And stepping outside the MIT bubble was honestly relieving. People were mostly amazed that we hadn’t started our spring semester yet while I really enjoyed learning more about the culture and customs at other universities.

i spent all my money! (1/17 – 1/19)

I decided to make a stop in New York City after realizing I have free will as a college student—I’ve never been on my own before. I stayed with an MIT friend who had graduated last spring, so it was also awesome to see him again! Catching up with friends is always fun.

Having no responsibilities for this period of time, I wanted to do all the classic tourist activities. As someone who has recently become a big musical fan: I watched & Juliet⁠06 rating: 9/10 and Little Shop of Horrors⁠07 rating: 8/10 . Money-saving tip: try getting rush and/or lottery tickets! I was able to see both for <100 dollars total with great seats! I also visited the Met and MoMA and devoured a ton of delicious food at the expense of my bank account.

monét painting, lunch at ollé, pizza!, signed playbill, dali painting, background: metropolitan museum of art

average interaction with my dad

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why do i do this to myself (1/20-1/25)

Back at MIT, it was prep week for MIT Science Olympiad! Every IAP, we bring ~1000 high school students to campus for one of the most competitive invitationals nationwide. The planning committee (PC) consists of ~30 undergrads who organize logistics, and we also have around ~40 event supervisors who write and proctor events. It’s an unforgettable experience and I’m always amazed that teams from as far as California and Hawaii appreciate our tournament.

This year, I really got to know my fellow PC members. There were a lot more people on campus than last year, so the work was quicker, the conversations were livelier, and the tournament ran smoother. Week-of could be hellish in the sheer amount of manual labor needed to be performed, but it’s so worth it in the end. The day of, we got up at 5:30AM and wrapped around around 11pm — my job as Publicity Head was basically manning the t-shirt booth for eight hours straight while giving directions to hundreds of lost high schoolers. I also co-hosted the Memes/Kahoot section of the awards ceremony, which was a nerve-wracking but fun experience! The day was exhausting but so rewarding—I wouldn’t change a thing.

merch sales, pre-tournament work, amazing t-shirt design!, planning committee photo, background: view from MIT at 6AM

some other stuff I guess

Less structured activities that I took part in:

1. web.lab! It’s a student-run course here at MIT that teaches web development! I definitely wish I spent more time on this, but I ended up nonetheless with a cute little website called OliveTheAbove that lets you create your own hobby portfolio!
2. Going back to my high school to take part in a school-wide panel about the college transition. I got a DM through Instagram randomly and decided why not? I also got to catch up with some of my friends still in high school.
3. Visiting the Harvard Art Museum’s pigment collection through the MIT Arts Scholars⁠08 A program open to all undergrad and grad students at MIT! Organizes a variety of art experiences throughout the year. .
4. Volunteering at Harvard Science Olympiad! I got to reconnect with my friends from HUSO-India and getting to compare and contrast the inner workings of competitions was great.

hi, my thoughts?

As a nerdy, academically-focused high schooler, my social life in high school was definitely on the quieter side. Similar to many MIT students I’ve talked to, I had a small group of like-minded friends that I mostly kept to (but still love dearly). The most student-body-wide recognition I got was being dubbed “Best Brains” or something in our high school’s superlative contest…

Transitioning to college, I definitely struggled a lot initially: I watched friend groups form without me, events occur without my knowledge, and the hustle and bustle of MIT continue without my inclusion — even at MIT, being an introvert is not easy. After my first year, I thought I had learned to keep up with the constant rhythm of MIT. Unfortunately, a series of events led to difficulties both academically and socially last semester.

My initial goal for this IAP was to put the previous semesters behind me. I wanted to focus on the activities and classes I had signed up for – this was going to be strictly for myself. And in that sense, IAP by all accounts was quite a success! (yay)

But when I think back to the past month, I don’t actually think about the sheer number of events I attended; I think about the incredibly cool people I had the privilege of yIAPping to. The conversations I had and the unplanned moments of connection with a diverse array of people were so valuable that I honestly I don’t know what to make of it—it seems I only found so much social fulfillment by accident and spontaneity? In previous semesters, I put so much time and effort into deliberately trying to form friendships, while this supposed period of solo adventure turned into precisely the opposite.

To me, IAP has always represented a chance to explore, step outside the usual routine, and take on experiences that become nearly impossible once classes start. But this time, I learned that, despite the name, you don’t actually have to do it independently! Looking back, going the entire month without engaging in social activities would have felt pretty lonely.

More broadly, I guess what I’m taking away from this IAP is that there’s a balance to be found between actively working toward your goals and embracing unexpected opportunities? Taking life just a little less seriously (in both social and academic contexts) seemed to work well for me. Obviously, I can’t expect every month to go the same way as IAP did, but I’ll try to take the memories and learning experiences with me as I navigate the remaining semesters I have here.