Academic Planning

Advising

Academic advising is key to a successful undergraduate experience. Stanford provides students with numerous advising resources designed to assist them with choosing courses, developing long-term academic plans, choosing a major preparing for graduate or professional studies and more.

Academic Policies

Academic life at Stanford is governed by a number of academic policies which are designed to provide guidance and structure to the undergraduate experience. These include:

• Academic standing,
• Course load
• Leaves of Absence
• Grading options

University Requirements

In order to graduate, students must fulfill a set of requirements designed by the University to serve as the backbone of undergraduate study at Stanford. These requirements include the following:

• Unit requirements
• General Education Requirements
• Thinking Matters Requirement
• Writing and Rhetoric
• Language requirement
• Major requirement

Choosing Courses

Students should take time to consider their options when developing a personally coherent, meaningful education plan from the diverse course offerings at Stanford. Think carefully about how to select courses each quarter which are appropriate to your personal interests and academic goals. Read more about:

• Choosing courses that fulfill GERs
• Thinking Matters classes
• PWR sections
• Courses within your major
• Weighing the option to take advanced courses

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Choosing Majors

The choice of a major is one of the most important decisions students make at Stanford. It can also be among the most difficult. Choosing a major is not just about fulfilling a requirement, it is also about focusing and deepening a student’s academic interests.

Stanford offers over 80 majors and numerous subfields, concentrations and options within each major. It’s important for students to consider how majors intersect with the broader academic goals. Explore the following topics in this section:

• Majors and careers
• Majors and preparation for graduate or professional school and
• Attaining breadth of study through Double Majors, Minors and Honors

Choosing Minors

Minors add breadth and coherence to an undergraduate education. In conjunction with a major field, a minor can help students achieve a more well-developed expertise in related areas of study. Alternately, a minor can be used to achieve a well-rounded, broadened course of study, allowing students to cultivate interests separate from their declared major. The process of choosing a minor involves the following steps:

• Weighing the choice to minor
• Choosing a specific minor
• Understanding how to count courses in minors and majors
• Declaring

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Choosing to Coterm

The Coterminal Master’s Program provides students with a unique opportunity to pursue a master’s degree in a specific subject while still completing their bachelor’s degree. Students should consider the following elements while weighing the decision to do this:

• Requirements for students pursuing a Coterminal degree
• The difference between pursuing a Stanford coterminal degree and a master’s degree elsewhere
• The implications for doctoral study

Planning Research

Engaging in an in-depth research project can be a rewarding experience. It challenges and stretches students in ways that are not possible in even the most rigorous course work. However, pursuing research within the diverse research possibilities at Stanford requires careful planning, taking the following into account.  Read more about

• Steps to begin research
• Timeline for beginning research
• The role of a faculty mentor in the research process

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Planning for Overseas Study

It’s never too early to start planning for studying abroad with the Bing Overseas Studies Program (BOSP).  BOSP presents Stanford undergraduates with numerous opportunities for enriching and diversifying their undergraduate experience.

Planning for Honors

Honors programs allow you to engage in advanced research, analysis and articulation through working closely with a faculty mentor. While most students tend to complete their Honors work during senior year, students can start planning for Honors as early as their freshman year. Students planning for Honors should take the following into consideration:

• The relationship between Honors and majors
• How to choose a faculty advisor
• How to choose an Honors thesis topic
• Resources and support available for Honors

Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC)

Stanford students have the option of participating in ROTC through cross-enrollment agreements with three neighboring universities. Details on these programs as well as the Haas Center Military Service as Public Service Project are available on our ROTC page.

Working with Faculty

Many students find working with faculty on research and other projects the highlight of their undergraduate experience. They also find faculty relationships a great asset when applying for fellowships, seeking entry to graduate or professional school and pursuing other academic opportunities.

Building these relationships early on and maintaining them over time is key and easily done through strategies such as taking small-enrollment courses like Introductory Seminars and going to faculty office hours. To make the most of the student-faculty relationship, students should review the following advice:

• Getting to know faculty
• Working with a faculty research mentor
• Asking for letters of recommendation

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Planning for Graduate and Professional School

Advanced planning for graduate and professional school allows students to follow a highly individualized path toward their advanced degree, which develops directly from their intellectual interests. Students interested in continuing their formal education after graduating from Stanford should create a strategic academic plan.  Read more about:

• Planning for Business School
• Planning for an Advanced Degree in Education
• Planning for Law School
• Planning for Medical School
• Planning for a Master’s or Doctorate Degree

After Stanford

Academic planning involves not just planning for life at Stanford, but considering how those choices influence life after Stanford. Many opportunities await the Stanford graduate.  Stanford offers assistance through a variety of organizations and networks, including:

• Career development services
• Alumni networks and
• Public service organizations

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