What Do These Course Abbreviations Mean?
What about the missing numbers?
¶ Course XIII, Ocean Engineering, became part of Course II, Mechanical Engineering, effective in 2005.
¶ Course XIX was Metallurgy from 1936. Within a few years, it became part of Course III, and shortly thereafter the number was reused for Meteorology. Course XIX was Meteorology until 1981, when it became Meteorology and Physical Oceanography. In 1983 it became part of Course XII. Colloquially, “Course 19” is sometimes used to mean “applied mechanical engineering.”
¶ Course XXIII first offered a PhD in modern languages in 1961, according to Tech reporting. Course XXIII became the department of Modern Languages in 1965 and the Department of Foreign Languages and Linguistics in 1969. A 1976 reorganization eliminated Course XXIII.
¶ MIT once had a Course XXV, Interdisciplinary Science; it was active from 1971–1982, according to a list compiled by Everett L. Butcher ’77 and available online at http://alumweb.mit.edu/clubs/ sandiego/contents_courses.shtml.
| Abbrev. | Department or Course Name |
| 1 | Civil and Environmental Engineering |
| 2 | Mechanical Engineering |
| 3 | Materials Science and Engineering |
| 4 | Architecture |
| 5 | Chemistry |
| 6 | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science |
| 7 | Biology |
| 8 | Physics |
| 9 | Brain and Cognitive Sciences |
| 10 | Chemical Engineering |
| 11 | Urban Studies and Planning |
| 12 | Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences |
| 14 | Economics |
| 15 | Management |
| 16 | Aeronautics and Astronautics |
| 17 | Political Science |
| 18 | Mathematics |
| 20 | Biological Engineering |
| 21 | Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences |
| 22 | Nuclear Science and Engineering |
| 24 | Linguistics and Philosophy |
| CDO | Computation for Design and Optimization |
| CMS | Comparative Media Studies |
| CSB | Computational and Systems Biology |
| ESD | Engineering Systems Division |
| HST | Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology |
| MAS | Media Arts and Sciences |
| OR | Operations Research |
| PEP | Professional Education Programs |
| RED | Real Estate Development |
| SDM | System Design and Management |
| STS | Science, Technology, and Society |