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2.4.1 Students of New Faculty: Policy

Last updated on:
Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Summary

Current doctoral students of faculty hired by Stanford have options for continuing their doctoral program once their faculty advisor transitions to Stanford. These options, which apply only to doctoral students, are outlined below to help newly recruited faculty and their students make informed and timely decisions. Discussions about these options should take place early in the faculty recruitment process to facilitate students’ planning and progress. Degree program faculty and staff are encouraged to consult with the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education to understand the options.

COVID-19 POLICY UPDATE: As of June 29, 2021, Stanford requires dean-level approval for new nonmatriculated student appointments and has been extended through Spring 2022 (until at least June 12, 2022). A dean may request an exception for a student who plans to accompany a faculty member who is newly recruited to Stanford under the status of Student of New Faculty or another status described below. Exception requests can be sent to vpge@stanford.edu.

Rationale

Faculty members recruited by Stanford University may be coming from positions where they have been advising doctoral students. The option for a doctoral student to continue dissertation research at Stanford as a nonmatriculated Student of New Faculty (option 4) is elaborated further in this policy, GAP 2.4: Students of New Faculty. Note that students at other universities who are at Stanford for more than 30 continuous days must be enrolled as a nonmatriculated student under one of options 3-5.

Options

  1. The student stays enrolled at the home institution and completes the degree program there. No formal actions needed by Stanford, but the faculty member and student should confirm with the dissertation advising policies of the home institution.
  2. The student at an early stage (pre-candidacy) may apply to an appropriate doctoral degree program at Stanford (ideally in the department of the new faculty member) and if accepted, matriculate and complete the degree program here. All degree requirements and decisions regarding timing, procedures and outcome of the student’s application for admission rest solely with the Stanford degree-granting program (see Graduate Admissions for more information about the application process and deadlines.). Students admitted to a graduate program are eligible to transfer up to 45 units of graduate coursework completed elsewhere, pending degree program and university Registrar approval (see GAP 3.2 Residency Policy for Graduate Students).
  3. The student may apply to be an Exchange Scholar, which allows the student to enroll in classes at Stanford while staying enrolled at their home institution. This option is only available for students at select, pre-approved universities, as described in GAP 5.8 Exchange Programs.
  4. The student stays enrolled at the home institution and enrolls as a nonmatriculated Student of New Faculty (SNF) at Stanford to complete research under the direct guidance of the newly-hired faculty member. The student's degree is awarded by the home institution. Students opting to move with their faculty advisor will have nonmatriculated graduate student status for Students of New Faculty, as described further below.
  5. The student may choose to complete research at Stanford as a Visiting Student Researcher (VSR). A VSR appointment is typically limited to one year, so this option is not ideal for students who may need more time to finish. VSRs must pay a monthly Registrar’s fee and may not be paid from a grant. Option 4, Students of New Faculty, offers students more flexibility and is preferred. See the Research Policy Handbook, RPH 10.7 Visiting Student Researchers.

The policy below addresses Option 4, Students of New Faculty, an option that was established in 2011-12 to ensure that existing students of newly-hired faculty are able to maintain their academic standing at their home institution while completing their dissertation research at Stanford.

Authority: 
Applicability: 

Any Stanford degree program recruiting faculty from another academic institution, and eligible doctoral students advised by that faculty member, as defined in this policy.   

Related Pages: 
2.4.2 Students of New Faculty: Implementation

1. Appointing Students of Newly-Appointed Stanford Faculty Into Nonmatriculated Stanford Status

Eligibility

Faculty who are being hired by Stanford University, and who are currently advising doctoral students in advanced stages of degree completion at their home university, may appoint one or more of these students into nonmatriculated graduate status at Stanford for the purpose of facilitating the completion of the student's doctoral research with their faculty advisor. To be eligible for this status, the student must:

  1. Have completed at their home institution all degree requirements equivalent to those required for Stanford’s TGR status (i.e., completed all curricular requirements, candidacy, and residency).
  2. Be in good academic standing at their home institution, and remain so while at Stanford.
  3. Demonstrate agreement to the terms and conditions for this appointment by signing the Student Addendum section of the Affiliation Agreement for Students of New Faculty (SNF) at Stanford University.

Appointment

The decision as to whether a newly-appointed faculty member may bring one or more current doctoral students to Stanford to complete their doctoral research, and the arrangements for doing this, must be addressed during the recruitment process and must be documented before the faculty member begins their appointment at Stanford (see Implementation). 

Appointment of these students into nonmatriculated Stanford graduate student status requires the approval of the incoming faculty member, that faculty member’s Stanford department chair and school dean, and Stanford’s Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education, as well as the department and the graduate dean’s office of the student’s home institution. Students must be appointed to a Stanford degree program, regardless of the faculty member’s primary Stanford appointment.

Approval for these appointments is documented by means of an institutional Affiliation Agreement for Students of New Faculty at Stanford identifying the student(s) and describing the arrangements for their appointment at Stanford. The Students of New Faculty Addendum to this agreement, completed for each student, specifies the timing of the appointment and the sources of financial support, if any, for each student. Because these students will enroll in the appropriate TGR course each quarter, their appointments should start on a date coinciding with the start of an academic quarter at Stanford (see discussion of enrollment below).

Students are appointed into this status for one year at a time, up to a limit of three years. The Stanford degree program in which the student is appointed may request extensions beyond the third year. Approval for extensions requires the concurrence of the Stanford school dean’s office and the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education, along with the appropriate office(s) at the student’s home institution.

Visa Processing

International students who have been granted F or J visa sponsorship by their home institution will remain on that visa during their appointment at Stanford. The appropriate office at the degree-granting institution will confirm this status with Stanford’s Bechtel International Center in advance of the student’s appointment here. 

In the case of a faculty member being recruited from a university outside of the United States, where the faculty member wishes to appoint a doctoral student to nonmatriculated status under the provisions of this policy, the student will need to obtain and maintain the appropriate visa status for their stay in the United States (see GAP 2.2 Requirements for New International Students).

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2. Enrollment

Once appointed, Students of New Faculty must enroll in the appropriate TGR course for zero units during each academic year quarter of their Stanford appointment. Failure to enroll in the appropriate TGR course for a term during the academic year may result in the termination of the student’s status at Stanford. Summer enrollment is optional subject to the relevant policies of Stanford and of the home institution.

When enrolled in TGR status, students may enroll in one to three units, which cannot be applied toward degree requirements at the home institution. Students of New Faculty are not expected to enroll in more than three units; if enrolled in four or more units, the student will be charged the graduate per-unit tuition rate, rather than the TGR rate.

The policies of the student’s home institution regarding enrollment expectations apply to each student. In many cases, students may take a leave of absence and the leave of absence policies of the home institution will apply. Students of New Faculty will not be placed on leave status from Stanford University. If a student is not on an approved leave of absence at the home institution, the student is expected to meet enrollment, degree progress, tuition and fee requirements at the home institution. If a student is approved for a leave of absence by the home institution for reasons other than appointment at Stanford, the appointment at Stanford will be discontinued and reinstatement will require the approval of the Stanford department chair, school dean’s office and Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education.

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3. Tuition, Fees and Financial Support

Tuition and Fees

Stanford’s tuition and fees are posted by the Registrar’s Office. Students of New Faculty will be charged TGR tuition for every quarter in which they are enrolled at Stanford (except as provided in Section 1.2, above, in the case of enrollment in four or more units).

In addition, these students will automatically be enrolled in the Cardinal Care insurance plan unless they contact the Vaden Health Center to demonstrate comparable alternative coverage and take the necessary action to waive Cardinal Care. Students in this status will also be charged the quarterly Campus Health Services Fee, regardless of the source of their health insurance.

Students of New Faculty will be charged a one-time Document Fee and ASSU fees.

Financial Support 

Students of New Faculty, like all nonmatriculated students, are not entitled to financial support from Stanford University nor are they eligible to be appointed as Teaching Assistants. However, the newly-appointed faculty member or the Stanford degree program may provide financial support in either of the following ways:

  • The student may be given a stipend from unrestricted sources, including funds designated as the faculty member’s “start up” funding. These funds may also be used to pay the student’s tuition and other Stanford fees as deemed appropriate.
  • If the student will be contributing effort in the performance of a sponsored project, the student may be appointed and paid as a Research Assistant (see Administrative Guide Memo 10.2.1, Graduate Student Assistantships). 

See Students of New Faculty in GFS for additional information about processing financial support for Students of New Faculty.

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4. Student Privileges and Responsibilities

Students of New Faculty are subject to the policies, rules and regulations of Stanford University. These include (but are not limited to):

  • Intellectual property: Students in this status are required to sign an SU-18 Stanford Patent and Copyright Agreement.
  • The Honor Code and Fundamental Standard: students in this status who commit violations of academic or behavioral standards are subject to termination of their appointment, at the discretion of the faculty advisor and the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education, who may confer with others as appropriate.
  • Required training: The faculty advisor is responsible for assuring that students in this status receive any required training in order to be able to carry out their research at Stanford, including appropriate health & safety training, instruction in the protection of human subjects, or any other instruction required by the work that the student will do. The faculty advisor is responsible to assure that students complete any required training.

Students of New Faculty must meet all deadlines established by the Stanford Academic Calendar, including quarterly registration. They are eligible for graduate on-campus housing on a space-available basis but have a lower priority than matriculated graduate students. They are also eligible to participate in the programs and support offered by the Graduate Life Office and in some programs offered by other Stanford offices as space is available.

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5. Discontinuance of Status

Appointments of Students of New Faculty can be discontinued by Stanford before the anticipated end date for any of the following reasons: 

  1. The student graduates from the home institution.
  2. There is a breach of the Affiliation Agreement for Students of New Faculty at Stanford or Student of New Faculty Representations.
  3. The faculty advisor leaves Stanford or is unable to serve as an advisor to the student.
  4. The student fails to comply with applicable laws and/or the policies of Stanford University. 
  5. Stanford determines it is in its best interests to separate from the student.

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