MSU Undergraduate Research Office

Name

MSU Undergraduate Research Office

Legal name

Undergraduate Research Office - Michigan State University

Website

https://venture.msu.edu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

University Research Administration

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAHAAAG

Public Research Universities with Major Extension & Outreach Missions

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Public Research Universities

Keywords

• Undergraduate research programs
• Research mentorship services
• Research symposium events
• Research ethics training
• Student research funding

Headquarters

HQ city

East Lansing

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Provost Undergraduate Research Funds: The office stewards and distributes Provost Undergraduate Research Funds to support undergraduate research across the campus. These are institutional funds, not commercial revenue.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The MSU Undergraduate Research Office connects undergraduate students with research and creative activity opportunities across all academic disciplines at Michigan State University. It stewards Provost Undergraduate Research Funds, runs peer advising through trained Undergraduate Research Ambassadors, and hosts the annual UURAF and MidSURE showcase symposia where students present research and creative work. Services include RCR training, workshops on research skills, a Mentor of the Year recognition program, and access to faculty mentors through partnerships and the Handshake platform, all provided free of charge to MSU students.

Product overview

MSU Undergraduate Research Office provides a comprehensive suite of programs and services to support undergraduate research across all academic disciplines. The core offerings include UURAF (University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum) and MidSURE for showcasing student research, the Undergraduate Research Ambassadors Program for peer advising, and the Mentor of the Year Award program. The office maintains the URE Module on the Spartan Experience Record platform for tracking research experiences, publishes UR@MSU and The Abstract newsletters, and offers workshops, funding programs, and RCR training. Integration with Handshake enables faculty-student matching for research opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF) MSU's premier annual showcase event where undergraduate students present research posters, oral presentations, or showcase artistic work to peers, faculty, and external audiences.
• Mid-Michigan Symposium for Undergraduate Research Experiences (MidSURE) Summer research showcase providing a venue for students involved in summer research and creative activities at MSU and other Michigan institutions to share their work with peers, faculty, and external audiences.
• Undergraduate Research Ambassadors Program Peer advising program where current undergraduate researchers provide one-on-one guidance during dedicated advising hours, facilitate workshops, and assist at UURAF to help fellow students navigate research opportunities.
• Mentor of the Year Award Annual recognition program presenting three awards: Faculty Mentor of the Year (Sciences, Mathematics & Engineering), Faculty Mentor of the Year (Social Sciences, Humanities & Arts), and Supervisor of the Year for staff, postdoctoral fellows, research associates, or graduate students mentoring undergraduates.
• Workshops Program Semester workshops covering topics including finding research opportunities, writing abstracts, preparing posters, oral presentations, and navigating research experiences, delivered for MSU undergraduate students.
• Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Training Required training covering research ethics including honesty, accuracy, efficiency, and objectivity; includes four Level I courses required for NSF/NIH grant recipients and UURAF/MidSURE presenters.
• Pathway to Research Guided pathway program helping students navigate the research process from initial interest through finding opportunities and getting started in undergraduate research.
• Provost Undergraduate Research Funds Stewardship Stewardship and distribution of Provost Undergraduate Research Funds to support undergraduate research across all MSU academic disciplines.

Quantifiable outcome

• Students who engage in undergraduate research are more likely to graduate
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSU maintains an Institutional Membership with the Council on Undergraduate Research, providing all MSU faculty, staff, and students with benefits including access to the CUR Community online forum, discounts on publications, ability to join CUR Divisions, and discounted registration to ConnectUR conference.
• Handshake (Michigan State University)coreTechnology or IntegrationHandshake is Michigan State's career development platform used to match undergraduate researchers with faculty members looking for assistance. Faculty post research opportunities with project descriptions, payment details, and application instructions.
• Kellogg Biological Station (KBS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKBS offers undergraduate research apprenticeship and internship programs, providing paid research positions with full room and board scholarships for students to work with KBS labs and research groups.
• Glassen Scholars Program PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with natural resource agencies and organizations including Michigan DNR, MDARD, EGLE, Michigan League of Conservation Voters, US Fish & Wildlife Service, USGS, and others providing internship placements for MSU students.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Purdue University Office of Undergraduate Research: Purdue's Undergraduate Research Office runs a parallel structure of workshops, ambassador-style peer advising, and a flagship symposium, closely mirroring the MSU office's program design at a peer Big Ten public university.
• University of Michigan Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP): U-Michigan's UROP operates as a comparable centralized undergraduate research support program at a peer Big Ten public research university, connecting students with faculty mentors and funding research opportunities across disciplines.
• UCLA Undergraduate Research Center: UCLA's Undergraduate Research Center provides centralized advising, workshops, and showcase events similar to MSU's UURAF/MidSURE model, serving a large public research university student body.
• MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP): MIT's UROP is the original and best-known model for centralized undergraduate research support programs, providing direct funding and faculty matching across STEM and humanities at a major research university.
• UC Berkeley Undergraduate Research: UC Berkeley offers the Haas Scholars Program and related undergraduate research support functions analogous to MSU's centralized programming for connecting students with faculty mentors and funding.
• University of Wisconsin–Madison Undergraduate Research Scholars: UW-Madison's Undergraduate Research Scholars program provides cohort-based research support and faculty matching at another Big Ten public research university, mirroring MSU's pathway-style programming.
• Ohio State University Office of Undergraduate Research: Ohio State's Office of Undergraduate Research & Creative Inquiry provides comparable research opportunity curation, faculty matching, and showcase events at another Big Ten public research university.

Others

• Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR): CUR is the national professional society supporting undergraduate research programs across institutions and is an active strategic partner of the MSU office via institutional membership, providing conference, publication, and community infrastructure.

Emerging players

• Caltech SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships): Caltech's SURF program centers on funded summer research experiences and offers a more narrowly STEM-focused version of centralized undergraduate research administration, useful as a model variant rather than direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Stanford Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE): Stanford's VPUE houses multiple undergraduate research programs (e.g., CURIS, SHTUR) at a broader scope than MSU's dedicated office, representing a more established but less focused version of centralized undergraduate research administration.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/UR_at_MSU
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCjLuotap57TuV8e3UCClMSw
• Facebookfacebook.com/urmsu
• Instagraminstagram.com/UR_at_MSU
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/msu-undergraduate-research-office

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about MSU Undergraduate Research Office