Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program

What Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program does

The Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program is an academic program housed within the College of Letters & Science at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, founded in 2015. It serves first-year, second-year, and transfer undergraduate students by pairing them with UW-Madison faculty mentors for year-long research or creative practice projects. Participants enroll in a credit-bearing course, Inter-L&S 250, earning 1–3 academic credits per semester based on weekly research hours (1–3 hours = 1 credit; 4–6 hours = 2 credits, the most common; 7–10 hours = 3 credits). The program combines individualized research placements with mandatory weekly small-group interdisciplinary seminars (15–18 students per seminar, held Wednesdays 5:30–6:30pm) co-facilitated by upper-level undergraduate URS Fellows who serve as near-peer mentors. All Scholars are required to present at the annual UW-Madison Undergraduate Symposium each April.

The program's product set is structured as an integrated academic experience with five core components: the URS Scholar Program (the foundational research placement track), the URS Fellow Program (a paid peer-mentorship role compensated at $15.00–$15.50/hour with structured training through Inter-LS 315 and semester trainings), the Inter-LS 250 Seminar (interdisciplinary discussion of research methodologies and ethics), Research/Creative Practice Mentorship (faculty-guided placements across biological sciences, humanities, social sciences, engineering, and the arts), and the Undergraduate Symposium (an all-campus presentation showcase, typically drawing over 900 student presenters). Technology infrastructure is limited to UW-Madison's Canvas learning management system for course enrollment, contract submission, and grading, alongside the MyUW student portal for registration.

URS does not operate as a commercial entity. It charges no separate fees beyond standard university tuition, and all financial flows occur inside UW-Madison's academic budget. The program is staffed by three core personnel — Director Hannah E. Bailey, Assistant Director Marina Kelly, and Scholar Program Coordinator Sam Garzillo (joined 2024) — supplemented by a variable cohort of URS Fellows paid hourly. Recruitment runs on a rolling admissions basis through the program website, SOAR orientation events, university email outreach, and a Google Forms application, with first-round decisions released in mid-July for each annual cohort.

Name

Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program

Legal name

Undergraduate Research Scholars Program (Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System)

Website

https://urs.ls.wisc.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program is an academic program at the University of Wisconsin–Madison's College of Letters & Science that pairs first- and second-year undergraduates with faculty mentors for year-long research projects combined with weekly interdisciplinary seminars.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Undergraduate Research Programs

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDANAKAH

Research, Capstone & Extended Essay Mentoring (IB EE, independent research)

Education/Tutoring & Test Preparation/Enrichment & Advanced/Accelerated Tutoring (Gifted/AP/IB)

Keywords

• Undergraduate research programs
• Faculty mentored research
• Academic credit courses
• Peer mentorship programs
• Interdisciplinary undergraduate seminars

Headquarters

HQ city

Madison

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Course Credit Revenue: URS operates as a credit-bearing course (Inter-L&S 250) within UW-Madison's academic structure. Students earn 1-3 credits per semester based on their research hours (1-3 hours/week = 1 credit, 4-6 hours/week = 2 credits, 7-10 hours/week = 3 credits). The program does not charge additional fees beyond standard university tuition.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The URS Program delivers a year-long undergraduate research experience at UW-Madison that pairs first- and second-year students with faculty mentors for research or creative practice projects (4-6 hours/week), complemented by a required weekly interdisciplinary seminar (Inter-L&S 250) and culminating in a presentation at the annual Undergraduate Symposium. Students earn 1-3 academic credits per semester under standard university tuition, and upper-level undergraduates serve as paid peer Fellows (URS Fellows) who co-facilitate the seminars.

Product overview

The Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program is a unified educational program at UW-Madison consisting of multiple integrated components: the URS Scholar Program (year-long research/creative practice placements with faculty mentors), the URS Fellow Program (peer mentorship by upper-level students), the Inter-LS 250 Seminar (weekly interdisciplinary discussions), and the annual Undergraduate Symposium (project presentation showcase). Students earn 1-3 credits per semester based on hours committed, with most enrolling for 2 credits working 4-6 hours weekly.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• URS Fellows: Upper-level undergraduate students who serve as peer mentors co-facilitating weekly seminars for URS Scholars. Fellows receive compensation ($15.00/hour for incoming, $15.50/hour for returning) and undergo specific training including Inter-LS 315, Summer Remote Training, and Fall/Spring Fellows Training.

Products and services

• URS Scholar Program Year-long undergraduate research experience at UW-Madison pairing first- and second-year students with faculty mentors for research or creative practice projects, combined with weekly interdisciplinary seminars and presentation at the annual Undergraduate Symposium.
• URS Fellow Program Paid peer mentorship role for upper-level undergraduates who co-facilitate weekly seminars for incoming Scholars, provide feedback on research presentations, and support the program's community-building activities.
• Inter-LS 250 Seminar Two-semester credit course (Undergraduate Research Experience) where URS Scholars engage in weekly interdisciplinary discussions about research ethics, methodologies, and the intersection of research across disciplines, held in small groups of 15-18 students led by peer mentors.
• Research/Creative Practice Mentorship Faculty-guided research or creative practice placement where Scholars work 4-6 hours per week on projects spanning biological sciences, humanities, social sciences, engineering, arts, and more, culminating in presentation at the Undergraduate Symposium.
• UW-Madison Undergraduate Symposium All-campus showcase held annually in April where URS Scholars present their year-long research or creative practice projects in talks, posters, performances, or other formats, with support from the seminar curriculum for presentation preparation.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% of Scholars present at the annual Undergraduate Symposium
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Stanford Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPGE) Research Programs: Stanford's centralized hub for undergraduate research including summer research programs and academic-year fellowships. Directly comparable as a credit-bearing, faculty-mentored undergraduate research pipeline at a major R1 university.
• MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP): MIT's flagship structured undergraduate research program that pairs students with faculty mentors for credit-bearing research work. Directly comparable to URS in pairing early undergraduates with faculty, providing course credit, and emphasizing interdisciplinary exposure.
• University of Michigan Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP): Long-running structured UROP at Michigan that pairs first- and second-year undergraduates with faculty mentors for course-credit research. Closely parallels URS in cohort structure, early-student focus, and credit-based delivery.
• Columbia University Center for Undergraduate Research: Centralized Columbia office administering research grants, fellowships, and the Undergraduate Research Symposium. Directly comparable as a credit-bearing, mentor-matched undergraduate research program within a College of Letters & Sciences equivalent.
• McNair Scholars Program: Federal TRIO program preparing underrepresented undergraduates for graduate research careers at universities nationwide. Comparable in faculty-mentored research, cohort seminars, and graduate-school pipeline outcomes.
• Harvard PRISE (Program for Research in Science and Engineering): Harvard's faculty-mentored summer research experience for first- and second-year students. Comparable in targeting early undergraduates who typically lack research access and pairing them with structured faculty mentorship.
• Yale Rosenfeld Science Scholars Program: Yale's selective multi-year research program for incoming first-year students in the sciences. Directly comparable in cohort-based mentorship, multi-semester commitment, and Symposium-style presentation requirements.
• Beckman Scholars Program: Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation program funding multi-year undergraduate research in chemistry, biological sciences, and related fields. Comparable in stipend/credit-bearing research immersion, mentorship, and Symposium-style final presentations.

Others

• NIH BUILD Programs: NIH-funded Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) programs at multiple universities preparing underrepresented undergraduates for biomedical research careers. Comparable in cohort-based, faculty-mentored research with explicit grad-school pipeline goals; operates as a federal funding overlay rather than a single-campus program.
• Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR): National professional organization supporting faculty-mentored undergraduate research across U.S. institutions. Comparable as an ecosystem enabler rather than a direct program competitor — provides the broader network, best practices, and recognition infrastructure that programs like URS operate within.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/uwundergraduateresearchscholars
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/urs-program

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Undergraduate Research Scholars (URS) Program