History - MIT GradEl

About GradEL

History

“The most innovative companies are not limited by ideas or by money—rather, they are limited by having enough effective engineering leaders to bring complex new products to market.”

Dan Riccio, GradEL Benefactor

Taking leadership to the next level.

The Riccio Graduate Engineering Leadership Program (GradEL) was established to help MIT graduate students develop the skills they need to succeed across diverse technical careers.

In the early 2000s, MIT identified an opportunity to take the best technical students in the world and develop them into exceptional technical leaders. This resulted in the formation of the Gordon Engineering Leadership program (GEL) for undergraduates—our sister program and predecessor. GradEL was created to enhance MIT’s commitment to engineering leadership education at the graduate level.

Apple executive Dan Riccio’s gift of $10 million in 2022 allowed GradEL to expand its classes, workshops, and certificate into a world-class program for future technical leaders. Speaking about the motivation behind his gift, Dan said, “The most innovative companies are not limited by ideas or by money—rather, they are limited by having enough effective engineering leaders to bring complex new products to market.”

As part of our efforts to contribute to engineering leadership as a field of study, GradEL continues to develop new classes and workshops that lead to the Graduate Certificate in Technical Leadership. In addition, GradEL launched an intensive internship experience called the Engineering Residency in 2024 with Apple and Northrop Grumman.

 

About Dan Riccio

Dan Riccio began his career at Apple in 1998. Over the next 26 years, he served as Vice President of Product Design, and Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering, leading the design, development, and engineering of nearly all Apple products including the iMac, iPad, iPhone, AirPods, and Vision Pro.

In GradEL, Dan recognized an opportunity to invest in future engineering leaders who would wield a combination of technical and interpersonal skills to drive innovative teams and companies. His decades of technical leadership experience align with and validate our mission. We are grateful for his generosity and proud to carry forward our shared vision for the future of engineering leadership.