Appointments and How to Bring in Visiting People

All visitors who will be at MIT for longer than two calendar weeks must be formally appointed. Camille C. Carino in the Headquarters Office handles all appointment and visa issues.

To start the appointment process, solicit a letter of invitation from the appropriate committee chair: Prof. Tom Mrowka for the Pure Math Committee, and Prof. Alar Toomre for the Applied Math Committee. This letter, which must also be signed by Prof. Michael Sipser as Department Head, should detail the terms of the person's appointment, including:

• Length of visit, including exact beginning and end dates;
• Title of appointment (Postdoctoral Fellow, Visiting Scholar, Research Affiliate, etc.);
• Salary, if any, and
• Any other privileges to which the visitor may, or may not, be entitled (for example, free xeroxing privileges, secretarial support, etc.).

It is important to notify Camille C. Carino in Headquarters as early as possible, when you believe you would like to invite someone to visit MIT, or when you learn of a scholar's planned visit—particularly when that visitor is a foreign national who may require a visa.

Visas

Because holders of tourist visas are not permitted to make official visits to MIT, the visa status of all foreign visitors, whether paid or unpaid, is very important. The type of payment a foreign visitor may receive, if any, will also restrict the choice of visa. The payment of honoraria or salaries in particular are very narrowly confined; please be sure to check with Camille when you are considering this form of payment. For more information of specific visas, see Visitor Visas.

Our Legal Responsibiliities for Visitors

All visitors, whether paid or unpaid, foreign or domestic, should be formally appointed when they come to MIT to research and collaborate for any length of time. All visitors are here at our discretion, in the fullest sense of the word, and anyone occupying MIT facilities and using MIT resources must have a formal connection to the Institute. The appointment serves to limit the exposure of the Institute to financial risk, either through lawsuits (the legal department is currently in the process of paying out over two and one-half million dollars in liability claims on behalf of MIT!), or increased overhead expenses (MIT is, after all, a private institution of higher education, and you pay for increased overhead through your grants).

The benefits of the appointment mechanism for the Institute are obvious. However, there are benefits for the visitor as well. If Camille is notified far enough in advance of their proposed visit, she will be able to process the appointment form in time for the visitor to be entered into the personnel computer system, and be able to get an MIT ID card, even if they will only be here a short time. This ID card provides conveniences such as:

• Instant library privileges,
• Access to MIT buildings after-hours and,
• If they've arranged for a parking permit, access to automated MIT lots and garages.

Visiting Students Definition

One category of visitor that is of particular interest to the Math Department is also one with which many people may be unfamiliar: the Visiting Student. To quote the overview provided by the International Scholars Office,

A person in the Visiting Student category is coming to use MIT resources and faculty contacts, primarily to enhance his or her own course of undergraduate or graduate study elsewhere, or to fulfill a requirement for the degree he/she is pursuing. The research conducted may be of benefit to the MIT faculty sponsor.

The Visiting Student is enrolled full-time in a degree program at another institution, and plans to work at MIT for anywhere from three to eighteen months. Any scholar who plans to visit MIT and has not yet received his Ph.D. should be appointed as a Visiting Student--particularly if they plan to use the work they do here towards their thesis.

It is important to point out that this appointment is also required for scholars much closer to home:

For example, If you are the thesis advisor for a student at Harvard or Wellesley, and they come in to meet with you occasionally to discuss their research plans and progress, no appointment would be necessary. However, if that same student were to be given desk space (use of MIT facilities) and/or a computer a ccount (use of MIT resources), then that student should in fact be appointed as a Visiting Student.

Similarly, students from other area schools may be cross-registered for courses at MIT. If that is the case, they have a right to be here, for that course. However, the same rules as above apply: if that cross-registered student is given a desk, or computer account, they should be appointed as a Visiting Student.

There is a $1000.00 processing fee associated with the visiting student appointment. This fee is not payable from a research grant.

If you have any questions about Visiting Student status, or any other appointment or visa issues, please do not hesitate to contact Camille in the Headquarters Office.

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