Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring

What Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring does

Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring (URFM) is a departmental unit within The Pennsylvania State University's Undergraduate Education division, headquartered in the Boucke Building at University Park, PA. The office, operating with 7 staff, serves current Penn State undergraduate students across all campuses, recent Penn State alumni (typically within 1-2 years of graduation), and Penn State faculty mentors. Its core function is to act as the central campus hub that connects students with undergraduate research opportunities, prepares them to apply for competitive national fellowships, and supports faculty in identifying and mentoring student researchers. Programmatic offerings include the Undergraduate Research Readiness Program, the Undergraduate Research Ambassadors peer mentor program, the Research Opportunity Hub database, the Erickson Discovery Grant (summer research funding), Conference Attendance Support, the Letters of Excellence faculty nomination program, the Spark Fellowship Development Program, the annual Undergraduate Exhibition, and individualized advising for a broad portfolio of major national fellowships (Fulbright, Goldwater, Truman, Rhodes, Marshall, Udall, Gates Cambridge, Knight-Hennessy, Boren, DAAD, Critical Language Scholarship, Hertz, and others).

The underlying technology stack is intentionally lean and undifferentiated: Starfish is used for appointment scheduling across separate advising lanes (fellowships, research, summer opportunities), and Zoom is used for virtual advising sessions and workshops. There is no proprietary technology platform, API, or mobile app; service delivery is workshop-based, advising-based, and database-mediated. The Research Opportunities Database and Letters of Excellence Program are the closest analogs to differentiated proprietary features, with the latter representing a domain-specific faculty nomination workflow. Distribution is multi-channel, including a website (urfm.psu.edu), email newsletter, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, a calendar of deadlines, and class/organization presentations booked via online request form.

The business model is non-commercial: URFM is a cost center within Penn State Undergraduate Education, funded through university and college allocations, and provides all services free of charge to eligible students and recent alumni. There is no pricing model, no fee-based tier, no external customer base, and no revenue. The unit is wholly dependent on its parent institution, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's state university system, and is currently operating remotely through August 14, 2026 due to renovation of the Boucke Building.

Name

Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring

Legal name

The Pennsylvania State University

Website

https://urfm.psu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1855

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring (URFM) is a 7-person advising office within Penn State Undergraduate Education that helps Penn State undergraduates find research opportunities and apply for competitive national fellowships such as Fulbright, Rhodes, Goldwater, and Udall, serving students, recent alumni, and faculty mentors free of charge.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Academic Advising

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Research Grants, Fellowships & Stipends (International) (EDAIAOAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Research, Capstone & Extended Essay Mentoring (IB EE, independent research) (EDANAKAH), Research & Lab-Based Short-Term Programs (Undergraduate/Graduate) (EDAIAIAF)

Keywords

• Undergraduate research mentoring
• Fellowship advising
• Research opportunities database
• Academic support services
• Fellowship application support

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

URFM is a Penn State University support office that provides one-on-one advising, workshops, programs, and an online research opportunities database to help undergraduate students find research opportunities and apply for competitive national fellowships such as Fulbright, Goldwater, Truman, Rhodes, Marshall, Udall, Gates Cambridge, Knight-Hennessy, Boren, and DAAD. The office also administers the Erickson Discovery Grant, the Spark Fellowship Development Program, Conference Attendance Support, the Letters of Excellence Program, and the Undergraduate Exhibition.

Product overview

Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring (URFM) is a university advising office that provides a coordinated portfolio of programs and services to support undergraduate students in pursuing research opportunities and competitive fellowships. The core offerings include the Undergraduate Research Readiness Program, Undergraduate Research Ambassadors, the Research Opportunity Hub database, the Erickson Discovery Grant (summer research funding), Conference Attendance Support, Letters of Excellence Program, the Spark Fellowship Development Program (7-week non-credit experience), and the Undergraduate Exhibition. URFM also facilitates applications for major national fellowships including Fulbright, Goldwater, Truman, Rhodes, Marshall, Udall, Gates Cambridge, Knight-Hennessy, Boren, DAAD, Critical Language Scholarship, and others. The office provides individual advising, workshops, and campus evaluation processes for these opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Undergraduate Research Readiness Program Structured program preparing Penn State undergraduate students for involvement in undergraduate research.
• Undergraduate Research Ambassadors Peer mentor program where current undergraduate researchers advise fellow students on getting involved in research.
• Research Opportunity Hub Online searchable database of undergraduate research opportunities available across Penn State.
• Erickson Discovery Grant Summer research grant funding student-initiated research and creative projects, providing living expenses and project costs.
• Conference Attendance Support Financial and logistical support for undergraduate students to present research at conferences.
• Letters of Excellence Program Program where faculty nominate outstanding students for competitive fellowships and invite them to fellowship information sessions.
• Spark Fellowship Development Program 7-week non-credit program helping students clarify goals, explore opportunities in research, service, leadership, and international study, and connect with funding pathways.
• Undergraduate Exhibition Annual exhibition celebrating undergraduate research and creative endeavors across all Penn State campuses with poster sessions and awards.
• Fellowship Advising and Application Support Individual and group advising for major fellowships including Fulbright, Goldwater, Truman, Rhodes, Marshall, Udall, Gates Cambridge, Knight-Hennessy, Boren, DAAD, Critical Language Scholarship, Hertz, Astronaut, Beinecke, and others.

Quantifiable outcome

• 31 students awarded Discovery Grants for summer research support
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Princeton Office of Undergraduate Research: Centralized university office at Princeton that supports undergraduates in finding research opportunities and applying for competitive national fellowships — same role and service mix as URFM.
• Columbia Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships: Columbia's centralized unit connecting undergraduates with research opportunities and major national fellowships including Fulbright, Rhodes, and Goldwater.
• Yale Office of Undergraduate Research: Yale's centralized research advising office that supports undergraduate research involvement and fellowship applications across all majors.
• UNC Office of Undergraduate Research: UNC-Chapel Hill's central undergraduate research and fellowships hub, advising on research engagement and major national awards.
• Stanford Undergraduate Research: Stanford's hub for undergraduate research opportunities and fellowship advising, offering database access, advising appointments, and faculty mentorship matching analogous to URFM.
• University of Michigan Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program: Long-running centralized program matching U-M undergraduates with faculty research mentors and supporting fellowship pipelines, structurally similar to URFM.
• Harvard Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships: Harvard's central undergraduate research and fellowships advising unit, providing individual advising, workshops, and nomination support for the same major awards URFM supports.
• MIT Office of Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programming: Central MIT office that advises undergraduates on research engagement and competitive fellowships, with a comparable advising and nomination support model.
• Cornell Office of Undergraduate Research: Cornell's central undergraduate research office providing advising, funding programs, and presentation opportunities parallel to URFM's portfolio.

Others

• Council on Undergraduate Research: National membership organization that sets standards, provides training, and convenes practitioners of undergraduate research and fellowship mentoring — an ecosystem counterpart rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PSU_urfm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/psu-urfm
• Instagraminstagram.com/PSU_urfm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Penn State Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring