About

Stanford Summer Humanities Institute is a three-week, residential enrichment program that allows passionate students to dive deep into the humanities, exploring rich fields of inquiry that are rarely taught at the high school level.

Students laugh during a presentation at the Stanford Humanities Center.

Humanities Enrichment

Not for credit or grade, Stanford Summer Humanities Institutes allows students to discover new passions through in-depth study of literature, philosophy, history, and art.

In addition to exploring new subjects and ways of thinking, studying the humanities helps develop creative problem solving and research skills.

Intensive Exploration

Participants investigate topics in the humanities that teach them to understand the past, question the present, and imagine the future.

Independent Research

During their third week, participants work closely with Stanford professors, graduate students, and writing mentors to produce original research projects.

Global Citizenship

Participants from around the world live together in a community of curious, independent thinkers from a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives.

Profound Conversations

From breakfast to evening activities, participants have the chance to discuss powerful ideas that they are exposed to in lectures, readings, and discussion sections.

Study the Humanities

A student speaks with Caroline Winterer.

What are the Humanities?

The humanities encompass a variety of fields including literature, philosophy, history, and art. Some scholars study ancient history while others examine contemporary issues.

Stanford Summer Humanities Institute allows participants to tap into Stanford's excellence in the humanities and social sciences—exploring texts and ideas at a profound level, developing their own research projects, and communicating complex arguments in their academic writing and discussion sections.

I’ve become a better writer throughout this process, I’ve been able to learn how to articulate my ideas both, actually, in writing and in speech.

Stanford Summer Humanities Institute Participant

On the Value of the Humanities

Impact of the Humanities

Professor Christopher Bobonich speaking about the program.

Philosophy and the Humanities

With numerous courses offered in philosophy, Stanford Summer Humanities Institute is a unique summer experience for students passionate about the humanities. Hear Professor Christopher Bobonich speak about philosophy.

Expert Stanford Faculty

Unique among Stanford Pre-Collegiate Studies programs, Stanford Summer Humanities Institute courses are all taught by Stanford professors. As a leading research university in all fields, Stanford's faculty members in the humanities are among the world's best in their respective fields.

Professor Allyson Hobbs

Instructor, Racial Identity in the American Imagination

Professor Héctor Hoyos

Instructor, Magical Realism and Globalisation

Professor Dan Edelstein

Professor, Revolutions

Caroline Winterer

Professor, The Age of Jefferson

Professor Christopher Krebs

Instructor, Rome

Professor Haiyan Lee

Instructor, Happiness

Professor Ken Taylor

Instructor, The Art of Living

Professor Christopher Bobonich

Instructor, Evil

An Immersive Academic Environment

A participant works with a graduate teaching assistant.

Engaging Intellectual Life

In addition to daily Faculty lectures, participants will work closely with Graduate Teaching Assistants each afternoon, allowing them to meet diverse humanities researchers.

After class, students work together at a picnic table.

Vibrant Humanities Community

The residential education format allows participants to grow in a community of humanities scholars, discussing coursework and other ideas both in and out of the classroom.

Participants visit the Cantor and view the famous sculpture, The Thinker.

Campus Resources

Stanford’s famous art museums allow participants to see everything from ancient to contemporary art at the Cantor Center for Visual Arts and Anderson Collection.

Learn More About Our Courses

One of our hopes was to expose students to big ideas, enduring ideas, ideas about democracy, revolution, social change, to the tools that the humanities have to help us think through those sorts of questions.

Professor Debra Satz

Department of Philosophy, Stanford University

Start Planning Your Summer