Preparing for the Major

In engineering, students must balance taking advantage of Stanford’s freedom to explore and ensuring they get a reasonable start on an engineering curriculum. Technical courses tend to be cumulative because more advanced courses draw heavily on the material presented in the introductory courses that precede them. For first-year students thinking about getting started in engineering or other STEM majors, the School of Engineering has a simple online tool called the STEM Roadmap opens in a new tab which suggests which courses might be appropriate to take in the first year.

Students interested in pursuing an Engineering Physics major should plan to take math and physics courses in the first year. Take the Physics and Math Placement Diagnostics to get advice on where to start in the sequences, and then see the sample plans for beginning the Engineering Physics (or Physics) major opens in a new tab. Although not required, PHYSICS 59 (Frontiers in Physics Research, 1 unit) is recommended. Contact Patricia Burchat (Professor in Physics, burchat@stanford.edu) or Mark Cappelli (Professor in Mechanical Engineering, cap@stanford.edu) for pre-major advising.

Sample 4-Year plans and detailed descriptions of the requirements for all these majors can be found on the  Engineering Undergraduate Handbook opens in a new tab website.