Find your field of study

Stanford’s Department of Philosophy offers rigorous programs in the traditional core areas of philosophy as well as opportunities to explore subfields including feminist philosophy and aesthetics. Its traditional strengths in logic and the philosophy of science are complemented by strong programs in action theory, ethics and political philosophy, language, mind and epistemology, and the history of philosophy, especially ancient philosophy and Kant studies.

Students of philosophy learn to think critically about the sources of knowledge and value, to express difficult ideas with clarity, and to make strong arguments. For undergraduates the department offers a general course of study as well as special programs in the history and philosophy of science and in the intersection of philosophy and literature. Graduate students are welcomed into a vigorous intellectual community where they participate in workshops, in reading groups, in colloquia, and in nearly all aspects of department life on an equal basis with the faculty.

View highlights of the philosophy department's undergraduate offerings.

Explore careers of undergraduate philosophy alumni.

Graduate joint degree offered: JD/PhD

Stanford’s Department of Classics takes an interdisciplinary approach to studying the literature and culture of the ancient world. Students examine history, language, literature, art, philosophy, and archaeology in courses that situate Greece and Rome in relation to other ancient societies.

At Stanford, classics is a dynamic field in which faculty and students employ diverse methods of study across media, genres, and time. Coursework delves into specialized fields such as ancient economics, law, and science to illuminate the relationships between various cultures and the ancient world’s influence on the contemporary one. Classics also collaborates with the Department of Philosophy to offer undergraduate and graduate joint programs in ancient philosophy.

View highlights of the classics department's undergraduate offerings.

Explore careers of undergraduate classics alumni.

Symbolic Systems is an interdisciplinary program that investigates both the computer and the human mind as systems that use symbols to communicate and represent information. Faculty approach the relationship between humans and computers by way of theoretical and technical expertise in cognitive science, linguistics, philosophy, and other fields.

Students learn technical skills in mathematics and computer programming, along with a foundation based on humanistic perspectives and empirical research. Many students go on to pursue advanced studies in artificial intelligence, neuroscience, or the philosophy of language.

Graduate joint degree offered: JD/MS

The Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages (DLCL) is home to the departments of Comparative Literature, French and Italian, German Studies, Iberian and Latin American Cultures, and Slavic Languages and Literatures. The division’s faculty are expert teachers of numerous modern languages and scholars of culture, literature, history, politics, and philosophy in a wide range of traditions.

In courses on campus and in the Bing Overseas Studies Program, DLCL students learn to think critically and globally about how people use language to make sense of the world, to claim an identity and a place in history, to entertain, and to persuade. In addition to its majors, DLCL offers an undergraduate minor in Medieval studies and a PhD minor in philosophy, literature, and the arts.

View highlights of DLCL's undergraduate offerings.

Explore careers of undergraduate DLCL alumni.

Ethics in Society offers undergraduates in any major the chance to earn honors by writing a thesis that applies moral and political philosophy to important social problems. Recent theses have focused on topical subjects such as inequality in education and the ethics of finance.

Students may also pursue a minor in Ethics and Society, engaging with moral issues, both personal and public. Choosing from a range of elective courses, students develop a foundation in ethical reasoning that may be applied to a particular theme, such as medicine, the environment, or technology.

The Center for Human Rights and International Justice offers an undergraduate minor in human rights open to students in any major or program. At Stanford and throughout the world, the center works to advance the cause of justice and human dignity. Students who pursue the minor work closely with experienced scholars and practitioners in the field of human rights in courses that apply history, philosophy, and political science to advocacy and experiential learning. For a capstone project, students may write a research paper, develop practical tools for the collection and analysis of data, or undertake creative work.

The Department of French and Italian offers students the opportunity to pursue coursework in language, culture, literature, and intellectual history within the French and Italian traditions. The undergraduate programs in French and Italian provide a comprehensive study of their respective literatures and cultures, establishing a solid basis for further study in literature or history.

The curriculum is designed to benefit students at all levels of language proficiency and to meet a wide range of interests. Students who wish to explore international relations, European history and literature, film studies, philosophy, and post-colonial studies will find many relevant course offerings.

The Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures teaches Russian language, literature, and cultural history, with a strong emphasis on literary theory and criticism. From freshman and sophomore seminars, which do not require specialized knowledge or knowledge of Russian, to advanced graduate seminars in Russian, the department offers courses that serve a wide range of interests.

Students pursuing majors in the department will become experts on a region that plays an important role in the world today and acquire the knowledge of philosophy, history, and cultural studies that will allow them to put this expertise to use. Along the way they can expect to master not only the Russian language but also the critical thinking, analytic, and writing skills necessary to succeed in a wide range of professional fields.

In Stanford’s undergraduate program in linguistics, students analyze the structure of language with close attention to sound, meaning, words, and sentences and learn how these structural patterns vary over time. Courses also draw connections between linguistics and anthropology, psychology, and cognitive and computer sciences, among other disciplines.

The graduate program emphasizes theoretical work based in empirical language data. Research and teaching explore a range of topics that includes computational linguistics, historical linguistics, language acquisition, psycholinguistics, semantics, and sociolinguistics. Linguistics also collaborates with Stanford’s departments of computer science, philosophy, and psychology to offer interdisciplinary doctoral study in cognitive science.

View highlights of the linguistics department's undergraduate offerings.

Explore careers of undergraduate linguistics alumni.

Stanford’s Department of Religious Studies provides a range of perspectives on the history, literature, thought, and practice of religious traditions. In addition to housing core faculty with strengths in the study of Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Buddhism, the department collaborates with a number of programs on campus. These include the Department of Philosophy, the Ho Center for Buddhist Studies, the Taube Center for Jewish Studies, the Abbasi Program in Islamic Studies, and the Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies.

The department also supports the study of languages needed to understand sacred texts and interpretive traditions, as well as research at Stanford’s overseas centers, where religions can be observed and experienced in their appropriate cultural contexts.

View highlights of the religious studies department's undergraduate offerings.

Explore careers of undergraduate religious studies alumni.

Comparative Literature (part of the Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages) provides students the opportunity to study literature in all its forms. While other disciplines focus on works of literature as parts of specific national or linguistic traditions, comparative literature examines the nature of literary phenomena themselves by drawing together texts from around the globe and from different historical periods. The department focuses on literary forms such as narratives, performance, and poetry, as well as cinema, music, and new emerging media.

Along with the traditional model of comparative literature that juxtaposes two or more national literary cultures, the department supports teaching and research that uses specialized tools of inquiry such as literary theory, the application of philosophy to literature (and vice versa), and other methods that enrich literary study.

Undergraduate students interested in exploring race and ethnicity from an interdisciplinary perspective may choose from a diverse array of courses as part of a major or minor in CSRE. Faculty in fields such as anthropology, economics, and philosophy teach in the program. In addition to coursework, students are encouraged to pursue their interests through internships, engagement with the community, and original research.

The Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity supports scholarship that illuminates how race and ethnicity are essential aspects of society today. As a hub for interdisciplinary research and teaching, the center fosters a deep understanding of the past and develops tools to address current social problems in the interest of creating a more just and equitable world.

View highlights of the CSRE program's undergraduate offerings.

Explore careers of undergraduate CSRE alumni.

The program brings together economics, political and moral philosophy, psychology, and legal studies with the aim of understanding public policy. Faculty from across the university have expertise in topics such as health care, education, national and international security, and criminal justice.

Along with an appreciation of ethical and pragmatic issues, students learn how to approach and evaluate major public policy challenges. Courses provide a foundation in economics and political science as well as opportunities to study policy in relation to energy, the environment, technology, and urban development. Seniors demonstrate their capacity to understand and solve pressing problems through seminars or independent research. The program also offers opportunities for graduate study.

Graduate joint degrees offered: JD/MA, JD/MPP, MA/PhD, MBA/MPP, MD/MPP, MPP/MS, and MPP/PhD