How to Declare CEE as your Major

Stanford freshmen and sophomores who want to pursue a major in Civil and Environmental Engineering should follow the course plan in the SoE Undergraduate Handbook. Taking the appropriate math and sciences courses in the early years will be a great help throughout the undergraduate program.

Declaring CEE as your major

Stanford undergraduates who wish to declare Civil and Environmental Engineering as their major should review the declaring deadlines and other information about declaring on the Registrar’s website. Interested students may also wish to consult with CEE's Undergraduate Peer Advisors to learn more about our undergraduate degree programs! You can meet with the peer advisors before or after declaring your major.

Instructions for declaring in Civil Engineering, Environmental Systems Engineering, Atmosphere and Energy, and Architectural Design

Follow the steps below to declare your major with CEE. If students have any questions or difficulties with any part of the process please reach out to CEE's Assistant Director of Undergraduate Degree Progress and Curriculum Management, Rachel Stringari (rstring@stanford.edu ) via email or by scheduling a meeting with her either in-person or via zoom.

  1. Declare in Axess: Enter your major declaration (CE, EnvE, Atmosphere & Energy or SA+E) in Axess.
  2. Fill out your Program Sheet: Download and complete your major Program Sheet, which you can obtain from the School of Engineering Undergraduate Handbook. A complete program sheet should include the following:
    • Grades and units for all completed courses listed in the appropriate columns.
    • "Date" column should be filled in for all planned out courses with the projected academic quarter you plan to take each class (example: Fall 2026, Spring 2027, etc.).
      • Note - You can submit revisions to your 4 year plan as you progress through the major, so please fill in as many courses as you can.
      • Note - Some courses have limited offerings and this should be taken into consideration when creating your 4 year plan.
  3. Reach out to a Faculty Advisor: Students can review this list of potential advisors to see which CEE faculty are eligible to advise students across CEE's major programs. [CEE Major Academic Advisors]. Review the list of advisors and reach out to listed faculty directly to inquire over their eligibility to take on a new advisee. You should meet with the faculty member of your interest to discuss your major and review your program sheet and 4 year plan. By obtaining a faculty member's signature on your program sheet you are obtaining confirmation that they will be your faculty advisor for your major program.
  4. Submit your program sheet to CEE Student Services: E-mail your program sheet with your advisor's signature to CEE's Assistant Director of Student Services for Undergraduate Studies, Rachel Stringari (rstring@stanford.edu ). Upon receiving your signed sheet, Rachel will approve your major declaration in Axess and you will be added to the relevant department e-mail lists relevant to your major program.
    • Note - Declarations submitted at the start of the quarter to will be processed before the end of that same quarter.
  5. You are encouraged to meet with your CEE undergraduate adviser at least once a quarter throughout your academic career to review your academic progress. Changes to your program sheet require your adviser’s approval and need to be submitted to the CEE department's Assistant Director of Student Services for Undergraduate Studies, Rachel Stringari (rstring@stanford.edu)
    • NOTE — it is very important to confirm that your program sheet is up to date at least one quarter prior to graduation. Changes to your program may not be accepted within one quarter prior to graduation.

Other information

  • Procedures for requesting transfer credits and program deviations are described in detail in the Undergraduate Handbook. Forms may be filled out and distributed electronically. If you are requesting transfer credits or program deviations, you should bring copies of your filled-out forms with your transcript and program sheet to the CEE Student Services office.
  • Check with the CEE Student Services Office to make sure that you are signed up on the CEE undergraduate students email list server for important announcements about CEE department events and activities.