The Stanford Undergraduate Program and Admission

Undergraduate Admission and Financial Aid

Students who derive pleasure from learning for its own sake thrive at Stanford. We look for distinctive students who exhibit energy, curiosity and a love of learning in their classes and lives. Academic excellence is the primary criterion for admission, and the most important credential is the transcript. We seek outstanding students who have selected a rigorous academic program and achieved distinction in a range of courses. We also take into consideration personal qualities—we want to know how students have taken advantage of available resources and their promise for contributing to the campus community and the world beyond Stanford. In some cases, exceptional ability in a particular area may be considered if an applicant is otherwise highly qualified.

Stanford recommends that prospective students take a minimum of four years of English, four years of mathematics, three years of laboratory science, three years of the same foreign language and three years of history or social studies. Each year, many more highly qualified students apply than the university has places for in the freshman class of 1,600 and the transfer group of about 80.

Stanford is committed to a need-blind admission policy for U.S. citizens and permanent residents—admitting qualified students without regard to their ability to pay—and to providing a comprehensive financial aid program for all admitted students who have computed need as determined by the university and who meet other requisite conditions for financial aid. Financial aid was provided to about 77 percent of undergraduate students from a variety of internal and external sources in 2005-2006.

The application postmark deadline for Single-Choice Early Action is Nov. 1, and the application postmark deadline for the regular decision process is Dec. 15. For more information about application policies and procedures, visit http://admission.stanford.edu or call the Office of Undergraduate Admission at (650) 723-2091.

The Undergraduate Program

The objective of Stanford University, Jane and Leland Stanford wrote in their Founding Grant in 1885, is "to qualify its students for personal success, and direct usefulness in life; And its purposes, to promote the public welfare by exercising an influence in behalf of humanity and civilization, teaching the blessings of liberty regulated by law, and inculcating love and reverence for the great principles of government as derived from the inalienable rights of man to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

With an approximate 7 to 1 student-to-faculty ratio, Stanford emphasizes close interaction with faculty. Stanford offers three undergraduate degrees – Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Bachelor of Sciences (B.S.), and Bachelor of Arts and Sciences (B.A.S.) – each designed to achieve balance between depth of knowledge acquired through specialization and breadth of knowledge gained through exploration. Undergraduates complete at least 180 units, including requirements for the major, writing and rhetoric requirements, one year of a foreign language and courses in the following areas:

• Introduction to the Humanities: One course each quarter of the freshman year
• Disciplinary Breadth: Five courses required, at least one in engineering and applied sciences, humanities, mathematics, natural sciences and social sciences
• Education for Citizenship: Two courses in at least two of the following subject areas—ethical reasoning, the global community, American cultures and gender studies

Of the seven schools at Stanford, three award undergraduate degrees: Humanities and Sciences, Earth Sciences and Engineering. Students who wish to pursue in depth more than one field may double major—that is, complete the requirements for majors in two fields—or minor in a second field. Students also can pursue an individually designed major.