EE-PHD - Electrical Engineering (PhD)

3.2.1 Residency Policy for Graduate Students: Policy | Graduate Academic Policies and Procedures (stanford.edu)

See Graduate Advising for a statement of university policy on graduate advising.

The Department of Electrical Engineering is committed to providing academic advising in support of doctoral student scholarly and professional development. When most effective, this advising relationship entails collaborative and sustained engagement by both advisor and advisee. Students are expected to meet with their PhD dissertation advisor at least once per year. Students who do not have a dissertation advisor are encouraged to check in with their program advisor. As a best practice, advising expectations should be periodically discussed and reviewed to ensure mutual understanding. Both advisor and advisee are expected to maintain professionalism, respect, and integrity. They should also be responsive to one another promptly.

Faculty advisors guide students in critical areas such as selecting courses, designing and conducting research, developing teaching pedagogy, navigating policies and degree requirements, and exploring academic opportunities and professional pathways. The Department’s Graduate Handbook provides information and suggested timelines for different stages of the doctoral program. For more information, see the department’s Graduate Degree Progress website.

PhD students are initially assigned a program advisor based on the interests expressed in their application. This faculty member provides initial guidance in course selection, exploring academic opportunities and professional pathways, and identifying doctoral research opportunities. The department does not require formal lab rotations, but students are encouraged to consider exploring research activities in two or three labs during their first academic year.

Students identify their doctoral research/thesis advisor, pass the qualifying exam, and advance to candidacy before the end of the second year of study. The research supervisor assumes primary responsibility for the student’s future direction, taking on the roles previously filled by the program advisor and ultimately directing the student’s dissertation. Most students find an advisor from among the primary faculty members of the department. The research advisor may alternatively be a faculty member from another Stanford department familiar with supervising doctoral students and can provide both advising and funding for the duration of the doctoral program. When the research advisor is from outside the department, the student still maintains the previous program advisor from the primary faculty to guide departmental requirements and opportunities.   

The faculty Associate Chair of Graduate Education is available during the academic year by email and during office hours. The department’s student services office is also an essential part of the doctoral advising team: they inform students and advisors about university and department requirements, procedures, and opportunities, and they maintain the official records of advising assignments and approvals. Students are encouraged to talk with their doctoral program advisor, the Graduate Student Teaching Advisor, and the Degree Progress Officer from the student services office as they consider advisor selection or for guidance in working with their advisor(s).

The department’s doctoral students are active contributors to the advising relationship, proactively seeking academic and professional guidance and taking responsibility for informing themselves of policies and degree requirements for their graduate program. See the Electrical Engineering Department Graduate Handbook (pdf) for more information.