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Summers
Summers are a particularly good time to explore various activities such as on-campus research, being an RA, completing a fellowship or internship, traveling, taking summer session courses, and/or employment.
Summer session
Stanford offers a limited number of courses disciplines during the summer months; credits earned during summer matriculation can count toward fulfilling graduation unit requirements.
Summer Research
There are many ways to incorporate research into your summer plans.
- Student Research Grants. Apply for a grant through UAR to support summer research.
- Departmental Research programs. Many Stanford departments and programs sponsor a undergraduate research program that provides financial support for students to work with Stanford professors on faculty-designed research projects.
- Other Research opportunities In addition to Student Research grants and Departmental Research Programs, students may find additional means to support their research projects.
- Summer Research College. This eight- or ten-week residential program managed by the Undergraduate Advising and Research office is designed for students participating in departmental research programs and other faculty-supervised research endeavors over the summer.
Haas Center Summer Fellowships
The Haas Center offers many undergraduate summer fellowships for public-service related work in the San Francisco Bay area and across the nation and world. Many are discipline-specific, so that students studying the Arts, education, or other disciplines can build on their classroom education through practical, real-life experience in helping others.
Internships
A summer internship provides the opportunity for students to acquire practical job experience while exploring their academic interests in a professional setting.
Sophomore College
Sophomore College offers second-year students the opportunity before the beginning of fall quarter to study intensively with Stanford faculty and small groups of other Stanford sophomores. All courses engage students in the materials and methods of inquiry of a particular academic field. Students live on campus with the other students in their course in September before the opening of fall quarter.
Bing Honors College
Bing Honors College brings students writing honors theses to campus in September before the start of the regular school year for a program of group- and major-based activities. By concentrating solely on the thesis for three weeks, BHC participants begin the senior year with a serious commitment to independent scholarship in an atmosphere of shared intellectual purpose.
Overseas Seminars
These three-week classes take place in early September, right before the start of the academic year, and are a great way for students to experience short-term study abroad. Seminar offerings change every year; they are limited to 12-15 students and are led by prominent Stanford faculty. In the past, Overseas Seminars have taken place locations as varied as Australia, Greece, Mongolia, and South Africa.
Employment Opportunities
High School Summer College Employment. Current Stanford students can work as Resident Mentors for Stanford’s High School Summer College.
Career Development Center. The jobs and internships database through the CDC offers help in finding a job for the summer.