Off-Campus Programs

Have a question about how an off-campus program might fit with your Urban Studies interests?  Talk to a faculty advisor.

One museum place, Shanghai - Claire Thielke

One Museum Place, Shanghai - Claire Thielke

Stanford in Washington

Stanford in Washington enables Stanford students to study public policy, government institutions, and political processes in Washington DC. The program operates during all three quarters, which allows for maximum flexibility in schedule planning; the program focuses specifically on environmental policy during the winter quarter.

Students typically study at the center for one quarter, during which they participate in small tutorials taught by policy experts, weekly policy seminars taught by Stanford faculty, and internships.  Depending on the content of the seminars and tutorials offered during a student's quarter in Washington, these courses may fulfill requirements, or count as electives toward an Urban Studies degree.

Internship: Urban Studies majors may fulfill their capstone internship requirement by completing the Stanford in Washington internship and submitting appropriate products (such as papers or projects) that demonstrate their learning. Before beginning the internship, students must complete the Placement Objectives Agreement, describing how they plan to fulfill the internship requirement, their faculty supervisor, and the anticipated final product. 

Students who carry out original research as part of their internship may also be able to use the experience as the basis for an honors thesis, or for their senior “capstone” paper, which they complete in the senior seminar (URBANST 203). Students should consult their major adviser before leaving for Washington to determine whether their academic work or internship at Stanford in Washington will fulfill Urban Studies requirements.

Potential internship placements of interest to Urban Studies students include such institutions and agencies as the Brookings Institution, the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Hispanic Caucus, the L.A. Times, the National Council of La Raza, and the Urban Institute.

Memorial Auditorium at Stanford

Memorial Auditorium, Stanford

Stanford Diversity Exchange Programs

Stanford has programs with Howard University in Washington DC, Spelman and Morehouse Colleges in Atlanta, and Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH that allow students to exchange schools for a quarter/semester or for a year, depending upon the school. Howard, Spelman, and Morehouse are three of the most highly regarded historically black colleges; students are exposed to disciplines from a different perspective. The Dartmouth exchange is focused on Native American studies.

Note that, in order to receive credit at Stanford, courses taken through the exchange program must be approved by the Office of the University Registrar, including external coursework, which must be approved before it can be considered for credit toward the Urban Studies major