Stanford

Stanford University

Stanford
#5 / #4
Global Influence / U.S. Influence
#1
Most Desirable School
Private research university in Stanford, California, U.S.

Stanford University Featured Rankings

About Stanford University

By James Barham, PhD

Stanford University was founded by Leland Stanford, a wealthy railroad magnate and erstwhile US Senator from California, as well as a former Governor of the Golden State. He placed the university in an unincorporated area about 30 miles south of San Francisco, adjacent to the town of Palo Alto (which he also founded). The campus lies in what is now known as Silicon Valley, which contributes greatly to the immense intellectual and economic influence of the private, research university that still bears the Stanford family name. Today, Stanford University is perhaps the closest thing to a true Ivy League school on the West Coast.

The university can claim more than 80 Nobel laureates among its alumni and its full-time or visiting faculty, including:

  • Carl Wieman in physics
  • Roger Kornberg in chemistry
  • Thomas Südhof in physiology or medicine
  • Paul Krugman and Joseph Stiglitz in economics

Stanford is also the world-leader in Turing Awards (for computer science) with 27 winners, including such luminaries as:

  • Vinton Cerf
  • Whitfield Diffie
  • Edward Feigenbaum
  • Martin Hellman
  • John Hopcroft
  • Donald Knuth
  • Barbara Liskov
  • John McCarthy
  • Allen Newell
  • Ronald Rivest

Another area of particular academic strength for Stanford is mathematics, as evidenced by the school’s eight Fields Medalists, including Maryam Mirzakhani and Akshay Venkatesh.

However, the particular area of strength that really sets Stanford apart from most other schools boasting similar academic firepower is its contribution to the world of business, especially successful start-up companies. Stanford is the alma mater of 30 living billionaires, including:

  • Sergey Brin
  • Elizabeth Holmes
  • Elon Musk
  • Larry Page
  • Peter Thiel

Its alumni have founded companies which combined have created 5.4 million jobs and generate $2.7 trillion in annual revenue (as of 2011). If these Stanford-connected companies were to join together and declare their independence, the country they would form would have the 10th-largest economy in the world!

Stanford is also the alma mater of many famous people from numerous other walks of life, including:

  • 31st President of the US, Herbert Hoover
  • Nobel Prize – winning novelist, John Steinbeck
  • Philosophers, Michael Dummett, Donald Davidson, & John R. Perry
  • Former Supreme Court Justice, Sandra Day O’Connor
  • 2020 Democratic Party presidential nomination candidates, Cory Booker & Julián Castro
  • Former astronauts, Mae Jemison, Ellen Ochoa, & Sally Ride
  • TV personality, Rachel Maddow
  • Movie stars, Jennifer Connelly, Sigourney Weaver, & Reese Witherspoon

Stanford is also ranked as the most influential school for tennis today.

Finally, with a library whose enormous collection contains more than nine million volumes, Stanford is a major research resource for the entire West Coast region across a wide variety of academic fields.

According to Wikipedia, Stanford University is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford has been considered to be one of the most prestigious universities in the world.

Stanford University's Online Degrees

Stanford University Admissions, Retention, and Graduation Information

Annual ApplicationsAcceptanceGraduation RateMedian SAT ScoreMedian ACT Score
56,3784%95%154034

How Much Does Stanford University Cost To Attend?

Tuition (in-state)
$58,416
Price by Family Income
IncomeAverage Net Cost
0 - 30K$-1,386
30K - 48K$-1,876
48K - 75K$3,637
75K - 110K$7,332
110K+$45,276

Source: National Center for Education Statistics

How Much Do Stanford University Graduates Make?

If you graduate from Stanford University, then you can expect to earn an average of $141,300 per year. You also have a 91% chance of being employed after 10 years.

Stanford University's Demographics

Demographic data is for full-time, on-campus students.

Student BodyUnder-GradsGraduates
20,4909,14411,346

Where is Stanford University?

Stanford University is located at , Stanford CA 94305

What Is Stanford University Known For?

Stanford University is known for it's academic work in the following disciplines:

Stanford University's Top Areas of Influence With Degrees Offered

Computer Science
#2
World Rank
#2
Historical Rank
#2
USA Rank
computer-science Degrees
Psychology
#2
World Rank
#4
Historical Rank
#2
USA Rank
psychology Degrees
Biology
#5
World Rank
#8
Historical Rank
#3
USA Rank
biology Degrees
Engineering
#3
World Rank
#3
Historical Rank
#3
USA Rank
engineering Degrees
Business
#3
World Rank
#3
Historical Rank
#3
USA Rank
business Degrees
Chemistry
#8
World Rank
#18
Historical Rank
#4
USA Rank
chemistry Degrees
Law
#7
World Rank
#8
Historical Rank
#5
USA Rank
Education
#7
World Rank
#7
Historical Rank
#5
USA Rank
education Degrees
Medical
#8
World Rank
#9
Historical Rank
#5
USA Rank
medicine Degrees
Mathematics
#11
World Rank
#20
Historical Rank
#6
USA Rank
math Degrees
Communications
#11
World Rank
#15
Historical Rank
#6
USA Rank
communications Degrees
Sociology
#14
World Rank
#19
Historical Rank
#6
USA Rank
sociology Degrees
Earth Sciences
#13
World Rank
#19
Historical Rank
#6
USA Rank
earth-science Degrees
Physics
#9
World Rank
#16
Historical Rank
#7
USA Rank
physics Degrees
Philosophy
#16
World Rank
#30
Historical Rank
#7
USA Rank
philosophy Degrees
Political Science
#9
World Rank
#9
Historical Rank
#7
USA Rank
political-science Degrees
History
#12
World Rank
#13
Historical Rank
#7
USA Rank
history Degrees
Religious Studies
#34
World Rank
#49
Historical Rank
#7
USA Rank
religious-studies-hub Degrees
Economics
#10
World Rank
#12
Historical Rank
#8
USA Rank
economics Degrees
Anthropology
#15
World Rank
#16
Historical Rank
#8
USA Rank
anthropology Degrees
Literature
#14
World Rank
#21
Historical Rank
#9
USA Rank
literature Degrees
Nursing
#22
World Rank
#23
Historical Rank
#14
USA Rank
nursing Degrees

Who Are Stanford University's Most Influential Alumni?

Stanford University's most influential alumni include professors and professionals in the fields of Computer Science, Engineering, and Business. Here are some of Stanford University's most famous alumni:

Allen Newell
Allen Newell
An American cognitive scientist.
Douglas Hofstadter
Douglas Hofstadter
An American physicist, computer scientist and professor of cognitive science.
Vint Cerf
Vint Cerf
An American computer scientist .
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor
A US Supreme Court justice from 1981 to 2006.
Hans Moravec
An Austrian-American researcher of robotics and artificial intelligence, and a supporter of transhumanism and "mind uploading".
John Harsanyi
John Harsanyi
A Hungarian economist .
Gérard Debreu
Gérard Debreu
A French economist and mathematician .
Rodney Brooks
Rodney Brooks
An Australian roboticist.
Anthony Kennedy
Anthony Kennedy
A US Supreme Court justice from 1988 to 2018.
Stuart J. Russell
Stuart J. Russell
An English-American computer scientist, (1962 - ), Portsmouth, England, United Kingdom.
Garrett Hardin
Garrett Hardin
An American ecologist .
Stewart Brand
Stewart Brand
An American writer.

Who Are Stanford University's Most Influential Faculty?

Stanford University's most influential faculty include professors in the fields of Computer Science, Engineering, and Business. Here are some of Stanford University's most famous alumni:

Carl Hewitt
Carl Hewitt
An American mathematician and computer scientist.
Fei-Fei Li
Fei-Fei Li
An American computer scientist.
Emmanuel Saez
Emmanuel Saez
A French economist.
Feng Zhang
Feng Zhang
A Chinese-American synthetic biologist, (1981– ), Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China.
Mendel Rosenblum
Mendel Rosenblum
An American academic.
David Eagleman
David Eagleman
An American neuroscientist and author.
Maryam Mirzakhani
Maryam Mirzakhani
An Iranian mathematician, (1977 - ), Tehran, Iran.
Nimrod Megiddo
An American computer scientist and mathematician.
Emmanuel Candès
Emmanuel Candès
A French statistician.
Lera Boroditsky
Lera Boroditsky
An American psychologist.
Elon Lindenstrauss
Elon Lindenstrauss
A Mathematician.
Justin Wolfers
Justin Wolfers
An Australian and American economist and public policy scholar.