The CIRTL Network

What The CIRTL Network does

The CIRTL Network (Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning) is a nonprofit academic consortium founded in 2002 and hosted by the Wisconsin Center for Education Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It serves graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and faculty — primarily in STEM disciplines — by providing professional development programming that builds evidence-based teaching knowledge, reflective practice, teaching mentorship, and academic career preparation. Its 43 member universities across three countries (USA, Canada, UK) each host a local CIRTL community, creating a distributed network model rather than a single centralized institution.

The network's product surface spans self-paced and synchronous courses (including The College Classroom, Mindset to Mastery, and Teaching-as-Research courses), short workshops, multi-week teaching institutes (e.g., Johns Hopkins Teaching Institute), postdoc mentorship programs (Postdoc Teaching Practicum), event series on career paths, and MOOCs delivered through EdX. Programming is delivered primarily over Zoom, with materials shared via Canvas LMS, registration managed through Qualtrics, and calendar integration across Google, Outlook, and iCal. Recent additions include AI-literacy offerings such as the UDL + AI Design Studio and Critical AI Literacy workshop. The network's underlying methodology is the Teaching-as-Research (TAR) framework and a four learning goals structure that has been refined over more than two decades.

CIRTL operates as a membership-based, grant-funded nonprofit rather than a commercial enterprise. Annual membership dues from 43 universities provide recurring institutional revenue, while primary program funding comes from the National Science Foundation, with additional support from Ascendium Education Group and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, plus in-kind contributions from member institutions and host infrastructure from WCER. Programming is free for members and alumni (with priority registration) and open to non-members via public online registration. There is no disclosed commercial revenue, no venture or private-equity capitalization, and no equity instruments; the entity is governed under The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System.

Name

The CIRTL Network

Legal name

The CIRTL Network - Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning

Website

https://cirtl.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The CIRTL Network is a nonprofit consortium of 43 universities across three countries, hosted at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, that delivers evidence-based teaching professional development courses, workshops, and mentorship programs for graduate students, postdocs, and faculty in higher education.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Faculty Development Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Continuing Education (CE/CPD) & Provider Accreditation Bodies (EDADACAF)

Keywords

• Faculty development programs
• Evidence-based teaching
• Higher education professional development
• STEM teaching training
• Academic teaching consortium

Headquarters

HQ city

Madison

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Institutional Membership: The CIRTL Network operates as a membership-based organization with 43 university member institutions paying annual dues to participate in the network and access programming.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The CIRTL Network is a nonprofit academic consortium of 43 universities across three countries that delivers professional development programming for future faculty in higher education. It offers evidence-based teaching courses, workshops, MOOCs, teaching institutes, and mentorship programs aligned with four learning goals: evidence-based teaching knowledge, community connection, reflective teaching skills, and career preparation. Membership is provided to institutions on an annual dues basis.

Product overview

The CIRTL Network is a consortium of 43 universities across three countries that provides professional development programming for future faculty in higher education. The network operates as a unified platform offering multiple interconnected program types: self-paced courses available year-round, synchronous workshops (one-part and two-part formats), structured courses (ranging from 5 weeks to 12 weeks), event series featuring alumni panels and career exploration, and intensive teaching institutes such as the Johns Hopkins Teaching Institute. Key programs include The College Classroom (12-week foundational course), Teaching-as-Research courses, Postdoc Teaching Practicum mentorship, and MOOCs delivered via EdX. Programming aligns with four learning goals: evidence-based teaching knowledge, community connection, reflective teaching skills, and career preparation. All offerings are delivered primarily via Zoom with accessibility features including live captioning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The College Classroom A 12-week course providing an introduction to key learning principles and the basics of effective, evidence-based teaching practices for college classroom instruction, designed for future and current faculty.

Quantifiable outcome

• Skills learned during TYRIT program consistently resulted in implemented projects across multi-year timeline
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and notable.

• Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWCER at University of Wisconsin-Madison hosts the CIRTL Network headquarters and provides institutional support and research collaboration.
• Inclusive STEM Teaching ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-institutional project focused on developing inclusive teaching practices across the CIRTL Network through the Faculty Inclusive Teaching Survey (FITS) Guidebook.
• NSF INCLUDES Aspire AlliancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational initiative focused on increasing participation and success of underrepresented groups in STEM; CIRTL participates in collaborative inclusion initiatives.
• CIRTL AGEPnotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerProgram focused on supporting underrepresented minority scholars in STEM through CIRTL programming and professional development.
• Postdoc AcademynotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerDedicated programming initiative for postdoctoral scholars to develop teaching skills and prepare for academic careers.
• Member Universities (43 institutions)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner43 universities across three countries participate as member institutions, each housing local CIRTL communities with unique programs and areas of expertise.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) program: National initiative housed at AAC&U that prepares doctoral students for faculty careers through mentored teaching experiences at partner institutions. PFF overlaps with CIRTL's future-faculty development mission and graduate-student audience.
• ACUE (Association of College and University Educators): Provides faculty development programs and credentials adopted by hundreds of institutions. ACUE's course-based, evidence-based teaching framework directly parallels CIRTL's pedagogical training approach for higher-ed instructors.
• POD Network (Professional and Organizational Development Network): A national membership organization dedicated to the advancement of teaching and learning in higher education. Like CIRTL, POD serves faculty developers and educational developers through conferences, publications, and a professional community.

Regional players

• Harvard Bok Center for Teaching and Learning: Harvard's teaching and learning center provides evidence-based teaching development for graduate students and faculty. While institution-specific, it represents the in-house teaching-center model that competes with consortium-based networks like CIRTL.
• Center for Teaching Innovation at Cornell University: Cornell's centralized hub for evidence-based teaching practice, supporting graduate students, postdocs, and faculty. Like other university-specific centers, it serves as both a CIRTL-style pedagogical resource and a potential competitor to consortium-based models.
• Stanford Center for Teaching and Learning: University-specific teaching center offering pedagogical development, teaching certificates, and graduate-student programming. CIRTL@Stanford is a local node of CIRTL, making this a directly comparable institutional model that competes for the same learners.

Emerging players

• National Center for Faculty Development & Diversity (NCFDD): Independent faculty development organization offering online courses, webinars, and accountability tools for academic career success. Shares CIRTL's graduate-student/postdoc audience but emphasizes productivity and tenure success over evidence-based pedagogy.
• Coursera for Campus: Online learning platform offering universities scalable access to thousands of courses including pedagogy and teaching development. While broader in scope, Coursera for Campus competes with CIRTL MOOCs for the same graduate-student and faculty audience.

Broad incumbents

• AAC&U (Association of American Colleges and Universities): Larger membership organization advancing liberal education and undergraduate STEM reform across hundreds of institutions. AAC&U's PFF program and broader policy work intersects with CIRTL's future-faculty and evidence-based teaching focus.
• NSF INCLUDES Aspire Alliance: National NSF-funded initiative increasing participation of underrepresented groups in STEM faculty careers. CIRTL is a partner in this network, and Aspire's broader systemic-change agenda overlaps with CIRTL's inclusive teaching and AGEP programming.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/cirtlnetwork
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cirtl-network

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The CIRTL Network