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About Stanford in New York (SiNY)

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Program Highlights

  • Quarter-long, 4-day/week internship in area of student interest related to each quarter’s focus
  • Director-led New York City Seminar, integrating the learning from coursework, the city, and work experience
  • Stanford Faculty-in-Residence and New York faculty-led courses designed to capitalize on the resources only New York can offer
  • Field trips, alumni mentoring, guest speakers, and group activities
  • Immersive city experience with students living together in a central location
  • Supportive mentoring in guided internships, helping participants translate their academic knowledge and skills into possible career paths

Areas of Focus

  • Autumn quarter: the Arts, Architecture, Design, and Urban Studies
  • Winter quarter: Media, Business, and Finance
  • Spring quarter: The Global City
  • Students need not be majors in the program focus areas but should be interested in studying and interning in these areas for the quarter. See more details below.

The Basics

  • Program Offerings:  Autumn, Winter and Spring quartes
  • Courses: The required New York City Seminar course is offered one day/week; choose from 4-6 other courses.
  • Participants: Rising juniors and seniors are eligible to apply; limited numbers of sophomores will be admitted during Winter and Spring quarters; the program enrolls about 20 students per quarter. Seniors or coterms are eligible as long as they do not confer their undergraduate degrees before they go off-campus.
  • Applications: Applications require short essays, a resume, and transcript. You may be invited to an interview with the program director before selections are made. Applications are due two quarters before the quarter of participation. For exact dates, please visit the Apply page.

Mission Statement 

Stanford in New York provides a structured experiential learning program that guides students in the development and integration of knowledge, skills, and values from the learning contexts of classes, internships, and the city itself. Leveraging New York City’s vast diversity of cultures, languages, and socioeconomic class, expertise in countless industries, complex problems and innumerable opportunities, the program helps students engage myriad communities, challenge biases and assumptions, and develop creative confidence in their personal, professional, academic, and civic endeavors. 

Staff Objectives  

  • To ground all aspects of the program in the theory and practice of experiential education, supporting students in identifying deep learning through critical reflection, communication, and documentation. 
  • To help students better understand New York as a complex, dynamic city by providing opportunities, ideas, and resources through programming, classes, and events that examine its history, engage the many identities of a New Yorker, and explore the five boroughs beyond tourist attractions, in an effort to challenge expectations and relationships to the city. 
  • To foster a sense of belonging and community among program participants by providing safe spaces for open dialogue, creating inclusive and supportive environments at classes and events, examining inequities, confronting bias, embracing diverse perspectives, and practicing cultural humility, especially in interactions with individuals and communities who have been historically marginalized and under-served. 
  • To support students in developing independence, initiative, and self-awareness, as well as personal and social responsibility. 
  • To foster wide, deep, and consistent engagement of alumni through programming such as panels, networking events, and mentorship; to foster a robust SiNY alumni network within the broader Stanford Alumni network. 
  • To encourage students’ sharing of learning and experiences as productive and engaged citizens in the communities of which they are a part during their short period of time in New York City. 
  • To be transparent and clearly communicate to students the rationale for our decisions and the opportunities and resources available to them; to seek to understand barriers and identify solutions/resources to provide as equitable a program experience as possible. 
  • To promote sustainability in our operations and student activities. 
  • To solicit student input and conduct regular assessments to help understand the effectiveness of our program, highlight areas for improvement, and propose new ways of engaging students and alumni. 

NYC Seminar Student Learning Outcomes 

  • Students will be able to demonstrate knowledge of organizations in their chosen field, how they are structured, accomplish their missions, function within the city, and interact with related entities. 
  • Students will be able to convey a personal connection to New York City through writing or other form of expression. 
  • Students will be able to apply their academic learning to problems or contexts outside of the classroom and integrate their experiential learning back into the classroom. 
  • Students will be more confident in their creative problem-solving abilities. 
  • Students will identify ways that New York as a complex, dynamic city shapes issues relating to their field of study. 
  • Students will be more confident about how their knowledge, skills, values, and interests align with potential career paths and have an understanding of what they want to learn next.