Public & Community Service

Stanford offers a wide variety of public and community service opportunities, ranging from on-campus courses to off-campus research to community-based leadership projects. Students pursuing any course of study can find opportunities to serve and many offer academic credit.

Haas Center for Public Service

The Haas Center for Public Service offers many public and community service opportunities.

Service-Learning

Service-learning combines academic study with public service. Through service-learning, students engage with various communities, explore possible careers and develop leadership skills while earning academic credit.

• Service-Learning Courses
  Stanford faculty members have created dozens of service-learning courses that provide direct service to local schools, nonprofit organizations and government agencies. Other courses allow students already engaged in service to enhance the effectiveness of their service. Courses are also offered that introduce specific settings, a theoretical framework, and academic skills needed to prepare for public service fieldwork and internships.
• Community Writing Project
  The Community Writing Project (CWP) within the Program in Writing and Rhetoric is one of the oldest service-learning writing and rhetoric programs in the nation. Students in CWP sections fulfill their PWR 1 or PWR 2 requirement through this program. They do this by researching and producing written, spoken, visual, and / or multimedia projects that directly benefit nonprofit or government agencies with which they work. The project gives students opportunities to work outside an academic setting. Ultimately, their work will reach audiences beyond their teachers and serve tangible purposes for community audiences, as well as for the students.

Public Service Fellowships

Undergraduate summer fellowships offer support for Stanford students who wish to make contributions to public service organizations and communities. This is for either prearranged placements or self-designed fellowship opportunities in both domestic and international settings. Students apply classroom knowledge in a professional setting.

Stanford-Sponsored Off-Campus Community Service

Stanford sponsors two specific off-campus public service opportunities: a weeklong spring break service trip and a Washington, DC-based internship that lasts for one quarter.

• Alternative Spring Break
  The Alternative Spring Break (ASB) Program exposes students to complex social and cultural issues through direct service, experiential learning, group discussion and individual reflection. The vision is to transform students into advocates of social change on issues affecting our communities.
• Stanford in Washington
  Students serve as interns in institutions and agencies located in Washington, DC including the Senate, the House of Representatives the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Smithsonian Institution among others.

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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.

Research and Public Service

The Haas Center sponsors a number of research programs in public service. Additionally, students may engage in public service research projects of their own design with faculty and / or other students. Students seeking such opportunities should explore the Planning Research and Research Opportunities pages on this site.

• Community-Based Research Fellows Program
  This program brings together teams of students, faculty and community members to collaborate in research to solve a pressing community problem or effect social change. Students receive summer fellowship stipends or are paid as researchers during the academic year. Ideally, student fellows participating in this program will go on to apply for Haas fellowships or other undergraduate research grant opportunities.
• Andrea Naomi Leiderman Fellowship
  The Andrea Naomi Leiderman Fellowship is designed to support a student conducting research on a topic relating to the education of children and youth. This is particularly for the underserved communities of Northern California.
• Public Service Scholars Program
  Students admitted to the program participate in PSSP during their senior year concurrently with the honors program in their major academic department or program. Students from all majors are encouraged to consider this opportunity.

Community Service Leadership

In addition to the Public Service Fellow Leadership Program, the Haas Center sponsors leadership training, grants, workshops and awards for student organization and service leadership.

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