Project Types

A collaborative project shaped by a UW–Madison researcher’s intellectual contribution, often with defined scope, milestones, and deliverables.

Sponsored research is expected to create traditional academic scholarship outcomes and contribute to the body of knowledge in a given field.

Arrangement is administered by UW’s Research and Sponsored Programs via a submitted funding proposal from the Project Lead

These agreements typically involve a high degree of faculty creativity and autonomy, connecting business needs with the innovation and spark at the head of the discovery process.

This approach is often easiest for faculty to align with current research activities, and supports training of Ph.D.s and M.S. students, as well as broader impact through dissemination of research findings in the peer–reviewed literature, conferences, and often media coverage.

Pricing is based on documented expenses and billed out at standard rates akin to government grants.

The execution of a predefined or repetitive process, or the production of a product that meets predefined specifications.

If the activity involves data generation, the data may be so specifically related to a company product or process as to have little value to anyone other than the sponsor or the sponsor’s competitors.

The work may be confidential and/or the intellectual property of the funding organization. The activity is not expected to add to the body of fundamental knowledge in a given field.

Arrangement is administered by Nelson and negotiated between the Enterprise and funder through pre-proposal discussions

Using this model, our team is able to support industry partners with business-friendly flexibility.

This approach is often easiest for businesses to fit into their existing frameworks and supports fast-turnaround projects, NDAs, and other standard models of private-sector analysis activities.

These projects also generate revenue for faculty research, program activities, the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and the educational mission of the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

A fixed rate is applied for fixed deliverables and is dictated by market-competitive pricing. Relative to standard grant contracts, client services are billed out at higher rates, commensurate with market rates for similar private-sector expertise.