Graduate Admissions

Helpful Guides for Applying to the Biology PhD Program

The PhD program trains students for careers in research and teaching. In addition to a wide range of courses, the PhD program offers informal but intensive instruction in laboratories and seminars, characterized by close contact between students and their faculty advisors. Biology is one of fourteen home programs  in the Biosciences, which span the School of Medicine and the School of Humanities and Sciences.

 

How to Apply

 

Please visit our faculty page for a list of faculty recruiting for the 2026-2027 application cycle. 

Please visit our Dept subgroup page for a list of which faculty are affiliated with each subgroup

The 2026-2027 Biology PhD application process is run strictly through Biology (School of Humanities & Sciences). 

Previously part of the Biology Department, Hopkins Marine Station is now part of the Oceans Department within the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability (SDSS).  Several faculty took appointments in Oceans, while others chose to stay in Biology; still others have joint appointments.  Additionally, several faculty members in Ecology/Evolutionary Biology now have joint appointments within Biology and SDSS. Based on these changes, the following information will provide further guidance for the application process. 

  • Faculty with 100% appointments in Biology, will only recruit through Biology.  The Biology application will be used.
  • Ecology/Evolutionary Biology faculty with 50/50 appointments in both Biology and SDSS will recruit students through either Biology or Earth Systems Science.  If you are interested in working with Ecology/Evolutionary faculty with joint Biology/SDSS appointments, you should reach out to them directly regarding the appropriate application track to choose.
  • 100% Oceans faculty will only be recruiting students through the Oceans application.
  • Oceans faculty appointed 50/50 in Biology and SDSS (Oceans Department), will recruit students through either Biology or Oceans.  If you are interested in working with Oceans faculty with joint Biology/SDSS appointments, you should reach out to the individual faculty members you hope to work with regarding the appropriate application and track to choose. 

Faculty Affiliated with the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability

Oceans Department:

Fio Micheli 100% 

Jeremy Goldbogen 100%

Giulio De Leo 100%

Larry Crowder 100%

Steve Palumbi 50% Oceans/50%Biology

Barbara Block 50% Oceans/50% Biology

 

*Note Vanessa Barone, Chris Lowe, and Ayelet Voskoboynik are 100% in Biology

 

Ecology/Evolution

Rodolfo Dirzo 50% SDSS/50%Biology

Tad Fukami 50% SDSS/50%Biology

Kabir Peay 50% SDSS/50%Biology

Chris Field 50% SDSS/50% Biology

Gretchen Daily 50% SDSS/50% Biology

 

Application and Deadline

Stanford Biology PhD Program applications are made through Graduate Admissions. The application deadline for Autumn Quarter 2026 matriculation is December 2, 2025 at 11:59pm pst.  The application for the Autumn 2026 cohort will be available in September 2025.  Please review the Graduate Admissions website prior to starting your application. Applications are considered for admission in Autumn Quarter only. 

Application Status

To check your application status, click here to Visit Your Status Page. 

 

Apply Now

 

Requirements

  • U.S. Bachelor's degree or its foreign equivalent
  • Stanford Graduate application
  • Non-refundable application fee of $125 (or fee waiver found here)
  • Statement of Purpose
  • Three Letters of Recommendation (a maximum of four letters will be accepted)
  • Transcripts - Unofficial transcripts from all universities and colleges you've attended for one year or more must be uploaded to the online application.  Graduate Admissions only requires admitted applicants who accept the offer of admission to submit official transcripts that shows their degree conferral. Please do not send or have sent any official transcripts to us at this time.
  • A current Curriculum Vitae/Resume

To be eligible for graduate study at Stanford, you must demonstrate sufficient proficiency to read English with ease, understand rapid idiomatic English as used in lectures and group discussions, and express thoughts quickly and clearly in spoken and written English.

Effective for applicants starting graduate study in 2026: You are not required to submit English proficiency test scores if you meet one or more of the following criteria:

  • You are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
  • Your first language is English.
  • You earned a U.S. bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree, or international equivalent from a university where all instruction was conducted in English.
  • You have two or more consecutive years of full-time professional or educational experience in English, in the past 10 years.

You will not be required to submit English proficiency test scores in the application if your responses on the Personal Background page reflect that you meet the above criteria; no additional documentation is required at the time of application. If you are offered admission and accept the offer, you may be required to submit supporting documentation as a condition of admission.

If you do not meet any of the criteria listed above, then at the time of application you are required to submit an official test score from the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT) or the International English Language Testing System Academic Test (IELTS Academic) that meets the university’s minimum score for admission consideration.

Knight-Hennessy Scholars

Join dozens of Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences students who gain valuable leadership skills in a multidisciplinary, multicultural community as Knight-Hennessy Scholars (KHS).

KHS admits up to 100 select applicants each year from across Stanford’s seven graduate schools, and delivers engaging experiences that prepare them to be visionary, courageous, and collaborative leaders ready to address complex global challenges. As a scholar, you join a distinguished cohort, participate in up to three years of leadership programming, and receive full funding for up to three years of your PhD studies at Stanford.

Candidates of any country may apply. KHS applicants must have earned their first undergraduate degree within the last seven years, and must apply to both a Stanford graduate program and to KHS. Stanford PhD students may also apply to KHS during their first year of PhD enrollment.

If you aspire to be a leader in your field, we invite you to apply. Learn more about KHS admission.

Biology PhD Program General Information

 

Community Engagement and Belonging

We uphold and advance Stanford's values by maintaining recruitment activities that are accessible and free from discrimination. Learn more about Stanford Values and Commitment to Compliance.

 

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