Find your field of study

Stanford’s top-ranked Department of Biology encompasses many sub-disciplines ranging from molecular biology to ecology. Through a core set of courses and specialized electives, undergraduate students study and analyze the building blocks of life, from molecules and cells to organisms and ecosystems. 

Undergraduates and graduate students work with renowned faculty specializing in ecology, plant and animal physiology, population biology, genetics, immunology, neurobiology, cell and developmental biology, molecular biology, and biochemistry. In addition to working in labs on campus, students can pursue research at Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains and at Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove on the Monterey Peninsula (which is part of the Doerr School of Sustainability).

View highlights of the biology department's undergraduate offerings.

Graduate joint degree offered: MD/PhD

Human Biology offers an interdisciplinary approach to understanding human beings from biological, behavioral, social, and cultural perspectives. Through teaching and research on topics such as environmental policy, genetics, and child development, the program promotes the welfare of humans as well as the world at large.

Students take courses in many departments, developing a strong, integrated foundation in the biological and social sciences, as well as statistics. Capstone projects in research or community service allow students to pursue an area in great depth. In addition to offering a major and a minor, the program also awards honors to undergraduates who write a thesis based on their own research.

The Stanford Biophysics Program is an interdisciplinary, interdepartmental graduate training program that leads to a doctoral degree. It brings together faculty from more than a dozen departments in the Schools of Humanities and Sciences, Medicine, and Engineering, as well as the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory. Research in Biophysics applies the principles of chemistry and physics to solving biological problems with the help of the latest methodologies, such as computational biology and molecular analysis.

The program trains students to approach biological problems quantitatively. With the benefit of advanced coursework and exceptional facilities—including the Lucas Center for Imaging, which houses multiple whole-body MRI systems—students develop the skills needed to direct their own research to address critical problems in the field.

Stanford’s Department of Anthropology focuses on the study of human beings and societies through the examination of social, historical, ecological, and biological change across time. Known for its innovative approaches, the department focuses on the full span of human history and full range of human societies and cultures, including those in marginalized parts of the world.

Students are encouraged to integrate theory and research methods as they explore a range of related subfields that include archaeology, ecology, evolution, linguistics, medical anthropology, political economy, and science and technology. Areas of faculty and student research include questions of social, cultural, and biological diversity and issues of power, identity, and inequality.

View highlights of the anthropology department's undergraduate offerings.

Drawing methods and ideas from the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, archaeology introduces students to robust, multifaceted analyses of material culture and human societies. Coursework intersects with history, biology, earth systems, classics, anthropology, and other disciplines.

Stanford archaeology advances innovative research across the globe. The Archaeology Center on campus supports interdisciplinary collaboration as a venue where Stanford faculty and visiting scholars work to make the experiences of people, from the ancient past to the modern era, accessible in new ways. Students can apply what they learn in the classroom by participating in summer field schools in Europe, South America, and California.

The Department of Applied Physics focuses on solving technological and scientific challenges through the lens of physics. The department has a long tradition of building tools, from solid-state lasers to the atomic force microscope, with many advances becoming foundational in new fields of research and industries. Applied Physics has four main research areas: nano science and quantum engineering, lasers and particle accelerators, condensed matter physics, and experimental and theoretical biophysics.

Through collaboration and joint appointments with electrical engineering, biology, chemistry, and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, faculty and graduate students work on innovative concepts in foundational and applied physics that advance the boundaries of science.

The undergraduate mathematics program encompasses the full range of pure and applied mathematics. The major is flexible at incorporating math-related coursework in nearby areas such as physics, machine learning, cryptography, and finance. The department provides students with opportunities for extensive experience with logical reasoning, generalization, and proofs to communicate sound arguments, as well as the creation and interpretation of mathematical models for reliable data analysis (such as in computer science and computational biology). Undergraduates can earn a major or minor in mathematics. Many mathematics majors earn a double major followed by either graduate school in mathematics or nearby fields, or a career in the corporate sector, tech industries, or government agencies.

The expertise among the faculty covers the traditional areas of pure mathematics (algebra, analysis, and geometry) along with fields nearer to computer science (such as probability and combinatorics) and applied mathematics. There are graduate courses in a wide array of areas at the introductory and advanced levels due to the breadth of the faculty, some of whom have a joint appointment in the statistics department. The department hosts many distinguished visitors throughout the year and there are numerous weekly seminars on topics related to contemporary research.

View highlights of the mathematics department's undergraduate offerings.