Stanford Facts: Graduate Program

Graduate Studies

In Stanford’s first year, 1891, 39 men and 12 women from 19 states registered in graduate standing, representing one of the first opportunities for graduate study on the West Coast. Today, 8,328 students in more than 65 departments and programs are pursuing post-baccalaureate degrees in all seven of Stanford’s schools: Business, Earth Sciences, Education, Engineering, Humanities and Sciences, Law and Medicine. Exchange programs with the University of California at Berkeley and the University of California at San Francisco enable graduate students to take courses not offered at Stanford.

About 86 percent of Stanford graduate students receive financial assistance, aside from loans, from Stanford or external sources. About 52 percent of graduate students live on campus.

Graduate Admissions

Admissions decisions are made by each department and program. Programs also set application deadlines.

Graduate Admissions in the Office of the Registrar provides application information and materials for nearly all graduate degree programs. Visit http://gradadmissions.stanford.edu or call (650) 723-4291.

Graduate Fellowships

Fellowships are a form of funding for graduate studies that provide tuition and a stipend to support a student’s educational expenses. The availability of fellowships varies among departments, schools and programs. Academic merit and availability of funds are the primary considerations in the awarding of such financial support.

Three university-wide endowed fellowship programs for doctoral students are Stanford Graduate Fellowships in Science and Engineering (SGF), Stanford Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellowships (SIGF) and Lieberman Fellowships. SGF and SIGF award three-year fellowships, and recipients are free to choose their research projects and are not dependent on federal funding of a project or on faculty research assistantships. Lieberman Fellowships are awarded in memory of former provost Gerald Lieberman. SGF and Lieberman Fellowships are awarded by department or school nomination; current graduate students apply for SIGF awards. These three programs are currently supporting 513 recipients from 43 fields across the seven schools. In 2008-09, the annual stipend is $31,200.

MULTIdisciplinary Study

Stanford facilitates collaborative, multidisciplinary teaching and research. Many students receive more than one graduate degree, through a joint degree program or by applying to add a second degree program. Graduate students are encouraged to enroll in classes across the university, outside of their home discipline.

Stanford Graduate Summer Institute (SGSI) offers interdisciplinary courses exclusively for graduate students. Most SGSI courses are small, intensive one to two-week seminars, usually taught after summer quarter.

 

Graduate Student Profile
8,328 matriculated (Percentages may be rounded)
Schools
Graduate School of Business 877 (11%)
School of Earth Sciences 256 (3%)
School of Education 346 (4%)
School of Engineering 3,267 (39%)
School of Humanities and Sciences 2,103 (25%)
School of Law 586 (7%)
School of Medicine 893 (11%)
Geographic Origin
California 2,936 (35%)
Other U.S. 2,666 (32%)
Foreign (100 countries) 2,766 (33%)
   Asia 1,620 (59%)
   Europe 451 (17%)
   The Americas 345 (13%)
   Middle East and North Africa 210 (8%)
   Pacific Basin 60 (2%)
   Africa 40 (1%)
Sex
Women 2,998 (36%)
Men 5,330 (64%)
Race/Ethnicity
African American 255 (3%)
American Indian or Alaska Native 57 (<1%)
Asian American or Pacific Islander 1088 (13%)
Hispanic/Latino 422 (5%)
White 2,885 (35%)
International 2,726 (33%)
Declined to state 164 (2%)
Unknown 731 (9%)
Degrees Awarded (2008)
Master's 1,984  
Professional (JD, MD) 271  
Doctoral (PhD, DMA) 673