CS Marketplace for UW organizations

CS Marketplace (presented by the UW-Madison Computer Sciences department) connects UW-Madison departments, research labs, and campus organizations with talented computer science students who can build custom software solutions. Students gain real-world experience while you get high-quality technical work at an affordable cost.

Each project costs $2550-$3825, per student per 15-week semester. This is paid via a suggested hourly wage of $17 to the student for 10-15 hours/week. This is significantly less than hiring a contractor or professional developer, making it an affordable way to get custom software built.

You’ll hire the student as an hourly student worker and payment is processed through payroll. CS Marketplace will provide you with detailed instructions for your department’s HR/Payroll specialist once your project is matched.

Yes! After we provide you with 2-3 recommended students, you’re welcome to have brief conversations or interviews with them before making your final selection. We want you to feel confident about your match.

We’ll work with you to find additional candidates. We want to ensure you’re excited about your match, so we’ll keep searching until we find the right fit.

Our first cohort of projects will begin officially in Fall 2026. Some projects may start Summer 2026, depending on organizational needs and student availability. After the pilot semester, we’ll accept projects and students on a rolling basis, with new cohorts starting each semester.

Depending on your project’s needs, you may want to establish:

• Confidentiality agreements (NDAs) if working with sensitive data
• Intellectual property agreements clarifying code ownership
• Work expectations and timeline agreements

We’re currently working with UW legal to develop standard templates. We’ll advise you on what’s recommended for your specific project.

If you already know a student you’d like to work with, let us know! We’re happy to facilitate matches when both parties are interested. The student will still need to apply through our system.

Students cannot work on projects that:

• Violate university policies or ethical guidelines
• Involve illegal activities
• Require security clearances they don’t have
• Expose them to inappropriate content

Beyond that, we’re open to a wide range of technical projects!

Our students have diverse skill sets including:

• Languages: Python, Java, JavaScript, C++, R, SQL, HTML/CSS
• Frameworks: React, Node.js, Django, Flask, TensorFlow, PyTorch

Tools: Git, databases, cloud platforms, data analysis too

CS students are also adept at learning new languages and technologies quickly. When you submit your project, if you have specific technological needs, please specify which technologies you need, and we’ll match you with students who have those skills.

Email Amber Field CS Marketplace Director at afield@wisc.edu or reach out to Paul Barford, Computer Sciences Department Chair at pb@cs.wisc.edu. We’re here to help make this process smooth and successful!

We’re looking for coding and AI projects that can be completed in one semester (roughly 150-200 hours of work). Good examples include: data analysis tools, web applications, automated scripts, dashboards, mobile apps, database systems, machine learning models, and research software. Projects should be well-defined with clear deliverables.

Your role is straightforward and designed to fit into your busy schedule:

• Select your student – After we provide 2-3 recommended candidates, choose the student you’d like to work with
• Meet regularly – Plan to meet with your student every 1-3 weeks (30-60 minutes per meeting) to review progress, see demos of new features, and answer questions about your needs
• Provide feedback – Students work in 1-week “sprints,” delivering new features incrementally. Your feedback helps keep the project on track
• Be available for questions – Respond to occasional emails or messages when your student needs clarification

Don’t worry — you won’t be alone in this. CS Marketplace and CS department staff will provide project management support and mentorship to ensure students deliver high-quality work. We’ll handle the technical guidance and keep projects moving forward, so you can focus on making sure the final product meets your needs.

Here’s how we’ll match your project with the right student:

1. You submit your project – Fill out our project request form with details about what you need built.
2. We review and vet – Our team evaluates your project for scope, timeline, and technical requirements. We will work with you to right-size a project if needed.
3. We curate matches – We review student applicants and identify 2-3 students whose skills and interests align with your project.
4. You choose – We’ll send you profiles of recommended students, and you can interview and select your preferred match.
5. We facilitate the introduction – Once matched, we’ll connect you with your student and help establish expectations.

No, but you should have someone on your team who can:

• Answer questions about your organization’s needs and goals
• Provide feedback on work in progress
• Test and approve deliverables

CS Marketplace and CS department staff provide some technical mentorship through the CS program. You don’t need to be a programmer yourself, but having a technical point of contact is helpful. If your project requires specialized technical guidance, we can also help connect you with faculty mentors.

Most projects run for one semester (approximately 15 weeks). Students work 10-15 hours per week, giving you roughly 150-200 total hours of development time. If your project requires more time, you can potentially extend into a second semester.

We’ll conduct bi-weekly check-ins throughout the semester to monitor progress and address any issues early. If serious problems arise, we’ll work with you to find a solution, which may include bringing in additional support or finding a replacement student.

This should be clarified upfront. Typically, the organization requesting and paying for the project owns the resulting code and intellectual property. We can help you establish this in writing before the project begins.

Many research and administrative projects involve sensitive information. Let us know in your project submission, and we’ll:

• Help you draft appropriate confidentiality agreements
• Match you with students who understand data privacy
• Ensure proper protocols are in place before work begins

Yes! For complex projects, you can hire a small team of students. We’ll help coordinate the team structure and ensure clear role divisions. The cost is $17/hourly per student or a typical total of $2,550-$3825 per student per 15-week semester.

Fill out the project request form. We’ll review it and get back to you w about soon steps.