Three of the world’s most high-impact fields — law, medicine, and biosciences — come together in Stanford Law’s JD/MD program.

Stanford is one of just a handful of universities with top-ranked schools of both law and medicine as well as a robust program in biosciences. A university-wide tradition of encouraging and nurturing innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration — along with a location in Silicon Valley, with its thriving biotech and medtech industries — makes Stanford a particularly welcoming home for work that merges these three dynamic disciplines.

A JD/MD degree is not for everyone. Although overlapping classes can be used to reduce seven years of study (four for an MD, three for a JD) to around six, both programs provide intense challenges. The results, however, are an unparalleled immersion in law, medicine, and biosciences; credibility in all three fields; and the ability to work at their intersection. A JD/MD may be particularly useful for people seeking to work in health law, health policy, biotechnology, or bioethics; in academia, government, or the private sector.

Students must apply to and be admitted by both JD and MD programs separately. After admission, law school and medical school advisors help students plan a schedule that makes the joint program workable.