Sponsor a Student Capstone Project

Gain value-added information and a vetted talent pipeline while giving students real work experience in a supported classroom environment.

Achieve Your Goals by Helping Students Achieve Theirs

A Wisconsin School of Business capstone project is an opportunity for your organization to get answers to your tough business questions while helping students grow into trusted business leaders.

Solve a business challenge

Build your talent pipeline

Mentor the next generation of leaders

How It Works

In a semester-long capstone—a signature offering in WSB’s experiential learning programs—corporate partners identify a business need and sponsor a team of students to find a solution.

Students work in teams to provide consulting services and deliver actionable results for your organization. Students are supported every step of the way with:

Direct access to faculty and instructors with extensive consulting and industry experience
Built-in guidance through weekly class meetings, progress check-ins, and presentation practice that keep students on track
Practical skills introduced in class and applied directly to live projects

Graduate project teams typically include students who are getting their master’s degree in business analytics or an MBA.

Undergraduate project teams bring together students from across disciplines including: finance, marketing, real estate, human resources, operations, and more.

of sponsors said they would “definitely recommend” their team to someone else

Student Teams in Action

Examples of recent student projects:

Create a winning growth strategy

An organization wanted deeper insight into a new target market. Master’s students evaluated a large data set of consumer lifestyles and attitudes and delivered recommendations for increasing engagement through segmentation and targeting marketing tactics.

Conduct a feasibility study

An organization wanted to explore a new product, service, or expansion opportunity. Undergraduate students conducted a feasibility study that included cost analysis, break-even projections, ROI estimates, and an implementation strategy to guide decision-making.

Leverage data to identify cost savings

A company that had grown through acquisition had inconsistent supplier part data across divisions. Master’s students worked with internal and external stakeholders to identify common parts and highlight opportunities for cost savings.

What You Can Expect

Prepare

Weeks 1–3

Students learn valuable skills and frameworks that they will apply over the course of the project. Sponsors participate in Sponsor Orientation to learn more about the program, the coursework and what is expected as the project goes on.
Launch

Week 4

Sponsor companies meet with students and kick off the project. Students develop a work plan and align with the sponsor on project objectives and deliverables.
Work

Weeks 4–14

Students work 10-12 hours a week on the project during weekly class sessions and regularly meet with their sponsor and course instructor to stay on track for a successful deliverable.
Deliver

Week 15

Students deliver their results and final recommendations to the sponsor.

“To sum it up, this capstone project has been a huge learning experience, and I’ve learned a lot of valuable lessons that go way beyond what you can learn in a classroom. The challenges we faced, the skills we developed, and the insights we gained will definitely shape our future careers as data analysts. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of this project, and I’m excited to use what I’ve learned in the real world.”

Ambika Burramukku, MS ’25

Get Involved

Looking to get a fresh perspective on a business need? Searching for top talent? Please contact the Project Sourcing Office to learn more about how we can work together to support your organization and the next generation of business leaders.

“This experiential learning opportunity has allowed me to improve my communication, research and presentation skills as we work directly with our clients. This has given me a chance to apply what I am learning in my classes which has been so rewarding. Additionally, the project has been impactful to not only me, but also the company. There is real work to be done which has helped prepare me for the corporate world. The experience to help others has fulfilled a goal of mine to be an active contributor to the Wisconsin School of Business.”

Peter Freye, BBA ’25