Stanford Engineering
Computer Science
Engineering

Incoming CS PhD Students

Overview

This page details the schedule of orientation events sponsored by the Computer Science Department. We encourage students to explore many other campus-wide orientation events. Please visit the Graduate Life Office website (in September) for detailed information.

PhD Student Orientation Schedule

  • Date: Thursday, September 19, 2024 
  • Time: 10:00 am (PST) - 5:00 pm (PST) 
  • Location: Gates Building, Room B01 and B03
  • Do not miss this meeting! This is the most important orientation event for all new CS graduate students and will be held from 10:00 am (PST) to 5:00 pm (PST) on Thursday, September 19, 2024. 
    • This meeting is mandatory for all PhD students, including students with a change of degree and those with additional degrees.
    • The PhD Program Chair, Director of Finance and Operations, and CS PhD Program Director will be available to answer questions and distribute information during the PhD information session. 
    • This meeting leads into a month-long series of specially designed seminars for all new PhD students, which introduces the faculty and their respective research areas/groups.

PhD Additional Information

  • The first day of classes is September 23rd, and we recommend that you arrive one week before this date. If you are looking for housing, consider arriving earlier than one week before the first day of classes. 
  • If you are an international student and will be attending the orientation activities at the Bechtel International Center (I-Center), please check the I-Center's website (in mid-August) for detailed orientation information. 
  • If you have additional questions, please feel free to send an email to your student buddy.
    • Your student advisor is your student buddy, as mentioned in your admit letter. This student advisor is in addition to your faculty advisor and will provide you with less formal and more broad-ranging help. We encourage you to get to know your student advisor, as they can assist with various issues: academic, social, and more. They can connect you with other students and faculty members and inform you of departmental news.
    • Email phdstudentservices@cs.stanford.edu if you need clarification on your specific PhD Student Buddy.
  • Contact Jayanthi Subramanian (jayanthi@stanford.edu) for inquiries regarding the PhD program.