Vantaggi
I did my Ph.D. at MIT, I was a post-doc afterwards, I worked at a startup for 5 years and now a research scientist again at MIT, total 15 years here and I'm still going... There are reasons: - You get to work with the smartest, most talented and motivated people in the world. There is no place like MIT to keep your brain working and to generate ideas that push the barriers of knowledge on a monthly basis! - There is great freedom in working on the problems that you like. Progress here is based on fueling the enthusiasm people already have to work on what they like and given that the institution/employer trusts the employees' abilities. - There is a really strong spirit of collaboration. One can get advice on anything from the world's best experts. A theorist can find someone (from an experimental group) to fabricate their structure, an experimentalist can find a theorist to simulate their design. - People are NOT competitive. Engineers and scientists here are low-key people, work on their problems, and have enough personal confidence (due to their abilities) they are doing well, so they are not complexed and are happy to see when others also succeed. (see though related negative below) - This is a great place to get acquainted with people that matter and will matter in this world. There are continuously events to learn about topics beyond your field and make useful contacts. - This is the place that has probably generated some of the most successful startups in the world. MIT entices people to form companies, and supports with services like a Technology Licensing Office, Venture Monitoring Service etc. - Amazing employee benefits: (a) MIT has its own retirement plan of 5%. (b) Matches 401(k) contributions up to 5%. (c) Quite good medical insurance with on-campus medical facility (this is really convenient!). (d) Free pass for all Boston public transportation! (e) Discounts on many things... - Great athletic facilities (multiple gyms, indoor/outdoor courts, pools). - Very social environment, which comes with the nature of a university and the presence of students around.
Svantaggi
- Although (as mentioned above) you don't feel competition from other, the fact that everyone around you performs so well imposes quite a bit of stress on you from within that you need to do more and more. This can be quite frustrating at times, but it comes along with being around extremely capable people. - If one considers the skills and abilities of the employees here, salary is obviously extremely low relatively, compared to industry. - Since this is an academic institution, one often lacks the joy of seeing his/her work produce actual products that get into the market. It is also a personal choice how applied work one wants to do, but this is an academic institution, so basic science often comes first, as it should.