Frequently Asked Questions

Any incoming first-year Stanford student or incoming first-year transfer student is welcome to apply. The program is specifically designed to support students who have attended high schools with limited course offerings, students who are the first in their family to attend college, and/or students who simply feel that they would like further academic preparation before starting their first year at Stanford.

International students are eligible to participate in both our early summer and late summer online sessions. Due to visa constraints, international students are not eligible to participate in the five-week residential program. However, they are eligible to apply to join us for our sixth week of experiential learning on campus.

The program is free for students who participate in our online or residential program; students who participate on-campus receive complimentary room and board.

Applications for the 2025 Summer Bridge program opened on May 1.  Our priority deadline for those interested in Online Session I is Monday, May 26, at 11:59 PM PDT; the deadline for those interested in Online Session II and/or the On-Campus Session is Tuesday, June 10 at 11:59 PM PDT.  Visit our Apply page for more information and for our link to the application.  Read more about our different sessions on our Summer Bridge Sessions page.

The online program will take place entirely over Zoom, utilizing resources through Stanford online. The residential program takes place entirely on Stanford’s campus, where scholars will live together in a dorm (in a residence different from their academic year housing assignments).

In 2025, we will run two sessions of the Summer Bridge Program, along with a "Sixth Week" session. 

• Session I: classes take place online between Monday, June 23 and Friday, July 25. This session is exclusively only online.
• Session II online: classes take place between Monday, August 4 and Friday, September 5.  During Session II, we will offer not only online classes, but also a residential option for students who would like to attend in-person.  
• "Sixth Week" session: From September 6 through 13, we will offer a one-week co-curricular experience on campus, focusing on community-building and exploring university resources. 

• If the other program starts on or after September 6:
  • Online Session I or II: Yes, you can join both, as long as you are not participating in pre-orientation week (Sept 7–13).
  • In-Person Session II: No, because this session includes pre-orientation week, so you won’t be able to join another program during that time.
• If you are planning to participate in pre-orientation week (Sept 7–13):
  • No, you won’t be able to join another Stanford program that overlaps with that timeframe.

The welcome ceremony is currently planned for Sunday morning, though the exact time is still being finalized.

If you're considering switching to a different Summer Bridge session, please let us know as soon as possible. Session changes impact course availability, housing, and overall planning, so early communication is key.

To request a change or discuss your options, reach out to our team at summerbridge@stanford.edu. We’ll do our best to accommodate your request based on space and program logistics.

If you need to withdraw from the program, please notify us as soon as possible, whether you're enrolled in an online or in-person session.

For in-person sessions: It’s especially important to inform us right away. Depending on the timing of your withdrawal, there may be housing or meal plan fees, since arrangements will have already been made on your behalf.

To begin the withdrawal process or discuss your situation, please email us at summerbridge@stanford.edu.

The Summer Bridge Program is designed to support students who feel they would benefit from a little extra preparation before jumping into University-level classes, so our courses are designed to be preparatory for the type of work you'll do in your intro classes during your first year. You can read more about our courses here.

These courses are CR/NC classes (pass/fail) because we want you to focus on your intellectual growth in the topic rather than creating a stressful environment centered on achieving a particular grade. You will receive a unit for each class you take, reflected on your fall transcript.  Those units do count toward the 180 units you need at Stanford to graduate.

No, unfortunately, SAT scores, AP scores, or prior coursework cannot be used to waive the diagnostic.

The diagnostic is specifically designed to give us a more current and detailed understanding of your math skills to help us make the best possible course placement for Summer Bridge. It’s a required part of the process for all participants, regardless of previous experience.

The Summer Bridge diagnostic is similar to the fall placement test and uses the same platform and question pool. However, you’ll still need to take both – one for Summer Bridge placement and one for official fall course placement.

Because the test pulls from a large bank of randomized questions, your experience with each may feel different, but both are designed to assess the same core concepts.

Participants in the residential program will have access to computer clusters in their residence hall and will have access to laptops or tablets to borrow for the duration of the program.

Yes. If you're in the on-campus Summer Bridge session, you'll stay on campus the entire time, including the period between the end of Summer Bridge and the start of New Student Orientation (NSO).

You'll begin in Summer Bridge housing and then move to your academic year housing during pre-orientation week.

If you're enrolled in one of the online Summer Bridge sessions and are joining us in person for pre-orientation week, your housing and meals will also be covered through the start of NSO.

We ask that all scholars attend the Sunday morning welcome ceremony, so arriving by Saturday night is strongly preferred. If you're accepted into the in-person program and absolutely need to arrive Sunday morning, we can discuss options, but please aim to arrive by Saturday if at all possible.

We expect a wide check-in window on Saturday, and staff will be available throughout the day to welcome scholars. If you need to arrive later in the day, we’ll do our best to accommodate you. Please let program staff know as soon as possible if you anticipate a late arrival on Saturday.

The most important items will be bedding and a pillow. Be sure to plan to bring comfortable clothing for summer weather but also light jackets as the Bay Area gets chilly in the evenings. We’ll be sharing a suggested packing list soon!

The professional staff will be making assignments. Students will not know of their pairings until move-in day. You might be in a double, triple, or single if you need accommodations. 

More details to come regarding accommodations for a single.

We will be offering Chemistry, Math, and Writing classes, each of which is designed to introduce students to college-level work in that discipline. Students in the online sessions can choose to take one or two courses.

Unfortunately, we are not able to offer alternative class times outside of the scheduled sessions or class recordings. The current schedule was designed based on instructor availability and program logistics, and we aren’t able to accommodate additional class sections.

We understand that this may be disappointing, and we encourage you to explore future opportunities to participate if your schedule allows.

Unfortunately, students are only allowed to split enrollment across both online sessions if they are completing the math/chemistry sequence.

Otherwise, you may enroll in one of the two online sessions and take one or two courses during that session. For example, English and Chemistry within the same session.

You will be notified of your Pre-Orientation Week participation status by mid-August. We’re working to finalize placements and housing details, and will reach out as soon as decisions are confirmed.