Some MIT freshmen get high-level advisors
Members of the Class of 2015, from left, Abdulaziz Alghunaim, Elana Ben-Akiva, Jeffrey Sperling, Fernando Nunez and Jennifer Plotkin. Photo: Allegra Boverman A dozen lucky freshmen in MIT’s Class of 2015 got quite a surprise when they opened their enrollment packages last summer: They each found out that their freshman advisor would be one of the Institute’s top officials — President Susan Hockfield, Provost L. Rafael Reif or Chancellor Eric Grimson.“My first question was, ‘Why me?’” says Jeffrey Sperling, one of five MIT freshmen advised by Hockfield this year. “What were the chances of that happening?”Once the idea sank in, though, Sperling was excited to realize he’d have the benefit of “the wisdom and experience of someone in such an impressive position.” And over the course of the year, dealing with the pressures of juggling activities and grappling with the choice of a major, he found Hockfield to be “extremely skilled...