Choosing Majors

The choice of a major is one of the most important decisions you will make at Stanford. It can also be among the most difficult. Above all else, your major should excite you intellectually; it should focus and deepen your most important academic interests. 

You will likely need to undertake significant exploration and consultation to focus your interests and choose your major. Stanford offers more than 80 majors and many more subfields, concentrations and options within these. Consult frequently with faculty, department or program advisors, and student services staff to assess how various academic fields fit with your academic interests, strengths and goals. 

Advice for Exploring and Choosing Majors

Discuss your plans and questions with your advisors.

  • Speak early and often with your academic advisor or a UAR advisor about your evolving interests and thoughts on majors. Advisors have deep knowledge of Stanford curriculum and study programs that can lend new perspective to your decisions and, sometimes, lead you in new directions.  They can also make valuable referrals to other faculty who share your interests. 

Explore prospective departments / programs through introductory courses.

  • Introductory Seminars, in particular, provide a good opportunity for you to assess the field of study within a small, seminar format. Most departments also offer larger introductory courses intended to provide an overview of the field. 

Review the list of majors (PDF).

  • A number of departments and programs offer tracks, options or concentrations that allow special focus or interdisciplinary study within a major field. Many majors and their subfields are unique to Stanford, so you should consult faculty to learn about how they relate to your interests.

Consult department / program websites and the Stanford Bulletin.

  • Often the most detailed discussion of specific disciplinary goals and practices that characterize study in the major are provided on departmental / program websites. These sites also outline the research interests and expertise of the faculty and discuss career paths of recent graduates and alumni. In the Bulletin, look at prerequisites, course offerings, units needed to graduate and courses of study.
  • Stanford Engineering maintains an online Undergraduate Handbook  

Visit departments / programs.

  • Each department / program has a student services administrator (SSA) who is available to explain major requirements and typical programs of study to prospective majors. Ask the SSA to refer you to the director of undergraduate studies (DUS). This faculty member, who is responsible for advising prospective majors, can discuss details about study in the field. 
  • The SSA or DUS can also refer you to a faculty member who specializes in your area of interest.  Many departments also have undergraduate peer advisors or a list of current majors who can talk about their experiences in the major. Ask the SSA or DUS for names and contact information.

Explore and compare approaches and methods in different fields of study.

  • Consider how your interests and academic strengths align with the approaches and methods practiced in various majors that interest you. Some majors require significant time spent on quantitative analysis, problem sets or laboratory investigation. Others focus on primary source readings, papers and textual interpretation. Some take principally theoretical approaches while others are largely applied. It is important to determine which modes of thinking, inquiry and problem solving are of greatest interest to you. These are excellent topics to address when meeting with faculty in prospective majors. 

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Majors and Careers

Although your major may anticipate career paths you are considering, it does not necessarily need to determine your future professional or educational plans. The Stanford liberal arts education lays the foundation for skills and attributes that all employers seek, such as critical thinking, oral and written communication. While it is true that some careers have academic requirements (particularly in technical fields), most jobs do not require a specific major.

The Career Development Center offers advice and support to help students translate their academic major and intellectual interests into their professional interests. To take advantage of their expertise,

Majors and Preparation for Graduate or Professional School 

  • Planning for Medical School Medical schools do not privilege any particular major or set of majors in admissions decisions. Students intending to apply to medical school should choose their major according to their intellectual interests. All candidates for admission must satisfy a set of core science requirements.
  • Planning for Law School No required or preferred major exists for students planning to attend law school.  Students should choose the major that best fulfills their intellectual interests. 
  • Planning for Business School Students intending to go to business school should major in the field of their choice. No required major for business school admission exists. 

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Breadth through Double Majors, Minors, Honors, Individually Designed Majors 

Students with diverse or multiple interests may choose breadth of study by adding a double major, adding a minor, participating in the honors program, or pursuing an individually designed major

Students should weigh these options against the benefits of experiencing significant depth of study in the primary major. 

  • Double majors: Graduate by completing the requirements for more than one major. 
  • Secondary major: Pursue more than one major when they cannot fulfill all the course requirements necessary for the double major option.
  • Minors: Balance a major study with one or more minors in a different department. You may choose a minor in a related field to your major to enrich your course of study. Alternatively, you may choose a minor that provides academic balance, such as an engineering major and a history minor.
  • Honors Pursue advanced, independent work to complement their work in the major. Seven interdisciplinary honors programs accept nonmajors. 
  • Individually Designed Majors Engineering students apply to create an individually designed major (IDM) by consulting with the Dean of Engineering. Consult a UAR advisor for deans’ contact information.

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