The Academic Experience

Introduction

Stanford’s motto is “the wind of freedom blows” — a call to unfettered research, service and discovery—adopted as a guiding principle more than 100 years ago.

Stanford’s pioneering spirit of the American West fuels much of its mission, which is to overcome our time’s seemingly intractable challenges through open and fearless inquiry and action. Take the time to learn more about how our academic programs and undergraduate research opportunities relate to our mission. These pages will not only enable you to learn more about Stanford’s mission but will also provide you with basic information about majors and minors as well as general education requirements.

Main Content

Academic Programs

Stanford offers more than 70 programs of study in three undergraduate schools. Students can pursue joint bachelor/master degree programs and take classes in the graduate schools of education, law, medicine and business.

Undergraduate Education

Stanford’s undergraduate education is distinguished by a unique quarter-system calendar and a virtually unrivaled 5:1 student-to-faculty ratio where approximately 76% of classes have 19 students or fewer.

Beyond the Campus

The reach of Stanford’s campus extends far beyond Palo Alto—to Monterey Bay (home of the Hopkins Marine Station), to the Stanford in Washington Program, and to 11 overseas campuses from Brisbane to Berlin.

Beyond the Campus

Our Faculty

Current Stanford faculty members include 17 Nobel laureates and 4 Pulitzer Prize winners, as well as 24 MacArthur Fellows. One is the former U.S. Secretary of State while another founded the world’s first sleep laboratory.

Our Faculty

Research Opportunities

Stanford allocates more funding for undergraduate research—$4 million—than any other university in the U.S. Opportunities exist throughout campus, from the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Lab to the Hoover Institution Archives.

Research Opportunities

Life After Stanford

Stanford graduates leave Palo Alto with a network of 190,000 fellow alumni. Over 200 alumni chapters span the globe and alumni include everyone from actress Sigourney Weaver to Cory Booker, mayor of Newark, New Jersey.