Scholara matches students with faculty research labs at their university. Drop in your resume, swipe through openings ranked for you, and get invited to interview. No cold emails.
U-M pilot: sign in with your umich.edu email · More schools soon
University of MichiganOfficial affiliate
Accelerate Blue Foundry
Piloting at the School of Dentistry
🧪
Scholara.
ApplyPass
Public health
Community Oral Health Lab
Map access to dental care across Michigan
DataRemote OKCredit
ApplyPass
Stem cells
Craniofacial Biology Lab
Help map how teeth grow from stem cells
Wet lab8 hrs/wkCredit
Psst… drag the card!
↔ drag the card · sample openings
How Scholara started
The official advice? Email 7–10 professors and hope.
Every guide to getting into research says the same thing: make a list of labs, read their papers, cold-email the professors, and wait. Our founders did exactly that while trying to find research on campus. Spreadsheets of labs. Inboxes of unanswered emails. And the creeping sense that research goes to whoever already knows someone.
Faculty had the opposite problem. They wanted motivated students, but applications showed up as scattered emails and PDF CVs. So we built the match we wished existed: one profile, openings ranked for you, and a direct line to the labs that are actually looking.
Sent · Research hunt
Research opportunity in your lab?No reply
Following up on my last emailNo reply
Any openings this semester?Auto-reply: on sabbatical
Re: Re: Following upNo reply
The old way
✕Dig through dozens of lab websites
✕Cold-email 7–10 professors
✕Wait weeks for a reply (if one comes)
✕Start over next semester
With Scholara
One profile, built from your resume
Openings ranked for your skills and interests
Apply with a swipe
Hear back right in the app
How it works
From resume to research lab in three moves
Scholara replaces the spreadsheet-and-cold-email routine with one profile and a ranked deck of openings from faculty who want students now.
Upload a PDF and Scholara builds your profile for you: skills, experience, coursework and interests. Review it, add a short video intro if you like, and you're done in minutes.
Step 2
Swipe your matches
Every research opening is ranked for you. Swipe right to apply, left to pass. A fit bar shows how well each lab lines up with your background.
Step 3
Get the interview
Labs review applicants with an AI summary of each fit and invite their picks to interview. You get an email with next steps, and every application's status lives in one place.
Our pilot: the U-M School of Dentistry
How the School of Dentistry connects students with research
Faculty labs at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry post their research openings on Scholara, and students apply in a swipe. Whether you're a dental student or a pre-dental undergrad, it's the fastest way into dental research at Michigan.
For students
Find research that fits you
Openings from School of Dentistry faculty labs, ranked for you
A profile built from your resume, plus an optional video intro
Meet our owl. Help it hop over the book stacks. It's the same mini-game hiding inside Scholara for when you've swiped through every opening. The sky follows Ann Arbor time, so night owls get the moon.
Beat my high score!
🦉 Warming up the owl…
FAQ
Questions, answered
What is Scholara?
Scholara is a research-matching platform for university students and faculty. Students upload a resume, Scholara builds their profile, and they swipe through faculty research openings ranked by how well they fit. Faculty labs post openings, review applicants with an AI summary of their pool, and invite the best fits to interview. Scholara is piloting at the University of Michigan.
Who can use Scholara right now?
During the pilot, anyone with a University of Michigan (umich.edu) email. Scholara is live at the U-M School of Dentistry, where faculty labs post research openings for students. It's built for students and faculty at every university, and students and faculty elsewhere can join the waitlist.
I don't have a résumé. Can I still use Scholara?
Yes. Lots of students start without one. Build your profile from your classes, projects, clubs and jobs, and answer a few questions about why research matters to you: labs read those first. Or use Scholara's free résumé builder (no sign-in, with AI help to turn your notes into bullet points), download it as a PDF, and bring it to Scholara when you're ready.
How do I find a research lab at the University of Michigan?
The traditional route is to browse department and lab websites, look at programs like UROP (the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program), then email 7–10 professors whose work interests you and follow up. Scholara shortens that loop: you make one profile, see openings from faculty who are actively looking for students, and apply with a swipe. No cold emails.
How do I find research opportunities as an undergraduate at any university?
Start with your department's research page and your school's undergraduate research office, list the labs whose work excites you, then reach out to faculty with a short note and your resume. Scholara is built to replace that hunt at every university: one profile, openings ranked for you, and a direct line to the labs. Join the waitlist to bring it to your campus.
Do I need research experience to get a research position?
No. Plenty of lab openings are meant for students who are just getting started. Your Scholara profile highlights your coursework, skills and interests, not just past research, so labs can see why you're a fit before they meet you.
How do I email a professor about research opportunities?
Keep it short: who you are, which of their projects interests you and why, what you can contribute (skills and hours per week), and a resume. Follow up after a week or two if you don't hear back. On Scholara you skip the cold email entirely: your profile goes straight to the lab when you apply.
Can dental and pre-dental students find research on Scholara?
Yes. Scholara's pilot launched with the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, so it's one of the easiest ways for dental and pre-dental students at Michigan to find dental school research opportunities with faculty labs.
Who can see my profile?
Faculty see your profile when you apply to one of their openings. You decide which labs to apply to.
Is Scholara free?
Yes. Scholara is free for University of Michigan students and faculty.
Is Scholara affiliated with the University of Michigan?
Yes. Scholara is an official affiliate of the University of Michigan and part of U-M's Accelerate Blue Foundry program. Its first pilot is running with the U-M School of Dentistry.
When is Scholara coming to my school?
Soon. Scholara is built for every university: after the U-M pilot we're expanding to more schools at Michigan and then to other universities. Join the waitlist and we'll email you when Scholara reaches your campus.
Not at Michigan?
Scholara is coming to your campus.
Scholara is built for students and faculty at every university. We're piloting at the University of Michigan first and expanding to more schools soon. Join the waitlist and we'll let you know the moment Scholara reaches your campus. Faculty who'd like to bring it to their department, we'd love to hear from you too.