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Undergraduate & Graduate Students from Other Universities

Basic Information

All courses offered during the Summer Quarter carry Stanford academic credit. Grades are recorded on an official Stanford University transcript, along with the course name and credit earned. The Stanford Calendar is based on the quarter system. The unit of credit is the quarter unit. 

Student Enrollment

Students may enroll in courses on Axess beginning April 14, 2013.

To be eligible to enroll in courses, a student must have been offered admission, have completed a short acceptance process, and been issued a Stanford ID number. Students are assessed tuition based on the number of units in which they are enrolled, calculated at the rate for the undergraduate or graduate degree program they are pursuing.

Summer Session students are required to select their courses from the options listed at the Courses section of our website. The majority of summer courses are taught within the eight-week Summer Quarter; however, there are a handful of courses that follow a slightly different schedule. The start and end date for each course is listed above the course description. It is important that students review this information as they consider their options and build their summer schedule.

International students requiring a Stanford sponsored I-20 (Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant F-1 Student Status) may enroll in courses after receiving their Stanford Student ID number, but are required to verify receipt of their F-1 Student Visa by June 1, 2013 to remain in good standing for the Summer Quarter (Canadian citizens excluded). Students may verify their F-1 visa status by forwarding a scan or photocopy of their valid F-1 visa stamp to the Summer Session Office via email or fax:

Email: summersession@stanford.edu
Fax:   650-725-6080

Course Load

Every unit for which credit is given is understood to represent approximately three hours of work per week for the average student. Thus, in lecture or discussion work, for 1 unit of credit, one hour per week will be allotted to the lecture or discussion and two hours for preparation or subsequent reading and study. Studio-, field-, or laboratory-based courses require three hours of class time per unit of credit. During the Summer Quarter, the typical ten-week term is condensed to eight weeks; course load requirements increase proportionally.

Enrollment fees start at 3 units for a domestic student, or an international student who does not require an F-1 Student Visa. Any student may enroll in more than 8 units, but costs will increase accordingly. For certification purposes (such as deferment of most educational loans), visiting undergraduate and graduate students should check with their university’s financial aid office to determine their individual enrollment requirements during the Summer Quarter.

International students obtaining an I-20 (Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant F-1 Student Status) sponsored by Stanford University must enroll in a minimum of 8 units and must maintain this enrollment for the duration of the Summer Quarter.

Grading

Academic courses taught during the Summer Quarter are typically offered for a Letter Grade, or for an elected Credit/No Credit grading option. Non-academic courses are offered on a Satisfactory/No Credit basis. When enrolling in a specific course, a student has the ability to select their preferred grading scale from the options provided within Axess.

All courses offered as part of Summer Session carry academic credit, regardless of how they are graded. Most students express a desire to earn credit, but want to make certain their effort is reflected by a letter grade. For these students, the “Letter Grading” option should be chosen when available within Axess. Letter grades not only provide feedback on course performance – they may also be required in the future when a student is transferring courses to another educational institution.

For courses that allow a student to select between a Letter Grade and a Credit/No Credit grading option, students have the ability to revise their grading selection until the Change of Grading Basis deadline. See the Program Calendar for details. Once the Change of Grading Basis deadline has passed, it is no longer possible to adjust this aspect of course enrollment.

The tables below summarize the grading scales used at Stanford University. The Registrar’s Office maintains a full listing of the General University Grading System.

Credit Transfer

Undergraduate and graduate students wishing to receive credit at their home institutions for work completed at Stanford are encouraged to obtain pre-approval for their courses and should determine with their campus officials the correct procedures for credit transfer. In many cases, this process will require the review of course materials, including a course overview or syllabus. The courses listed within the Summer Session website provide a link to the current or previous summer’s syllabi. An additional resource is available online at syllabus.stanford.edu. In some cases, the department offering a course will have syllabi available at their website. The Summer Session Office also maintains an archive of recent course syllabi which can be forwarded via email upon request. 

Audit Status

Stanford does not offer courses for audit during the Summer Quarter.