 The U.S. Justice Department began an investigation in 1989 , and in 1991 filed an antitrust suit against MIT , the eight Ivy League colleges , and eleven other institutions for allegedly engaging in price @-@ fixing during their annual " Overlap Meetings " , which were held to prevent bidding wars over promising prospective students from consuming funds for need @-@ based scholarships . While the Ivy League institutions settled , MIT contested the charges , arguing that the practice was not anti @-@ competitive because it ensured the availability of aid for the greatest number of students . MIT ultimately prevailed when the Justice Department dropped the case in 1994 . 
