Industry-sponsored research or projects empower students to bridge the gap between academic growth and real-world innovation. At Keck Graduate Institute (KGI), these projects are woven into the fabric of our curriculum to create an unforgettable educational experience.
Discover how they strengthen your skills, expand your network, and shape your career path.
What Is an Industry-Sponsored Project?
An industry-sponsored project is a type of academic project that partners a company with a university, allowing graduate students to work on solving real-world challenges for their corporate partner.
Often, these projects last the full academic year — some run for a single semester — and have the pace, expectations, and collaborative nature of professional research and development and product teams. This immersive experience jump-starts graduate students’ transition from the classroom to the workplace in a seamless and impactful way. Projects also receive support from experienced KGI faculty.
What Types of Programs Include Industry-Sponsored Projects?
Industry-sponsored projects are most common in graduate programs focused on biotechnology, healthcare, engineering, and analytics because these fields rely heavily on applied learning, professional development, and real-world problem-solving.
Discover KGI’s Programs
At the Keck Graduate Institute, we typically refer to our industry-sponsored projects as the “Team Master’s Project” (TMP) program. Since 2002, TMPs have been an integral part of KGI’s graduate education, ensuring that each student gains vital, hands-on, industry-based experience. Over the past two decades, our Team Master’s Project program has expanded to include students from all of The Claremont Colleges, of which Keck Graduate Institute is a proud member.
Many of our master’s degree programs incorporate a TMP into their curriculum. Those programs include:
- Master of Science in Biopharmaceutical Process Engineering (MSBPE)
- Master of Business and Science in Biotechnology (MBS)
- Master of Engineering in Biopharmaceutical Processing (MEng)
- Master of Science in Medical Device Engineering (MSMDE)
- Master of Science in Applied Life Sciences (MS)
- Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD)
Additionally, our PhD in Applied Life Sciences program includes an industry-sponsored track, which connects you to a biotechnology, medtech, or pharmaceutical company and empowers you to conduct your research on behalf of that company.
Industry-sponsored projects like TMPs are at the heart of KGI's unique educational model. This model not only prepares students to lead in dynamic industries but also reinforces KGI’s role as a catalyst where ideas, talent, and industry needs meet to make real impacts.
Yun Liu
Associate Professor of Finance
The Benefits of Industry-Sponsored Projects
For Students
Industry-sponsored projects offer many benefits that extend beyond the classroom, including:
Hands-On Experience That Deepens Technical Competencies
Experience is the best teacher—and industry-sponsored projects give students the opportunity to learn by doing. This unique blend of academic rigor and real-world challenges enables students to strengthen their technical and analytical skills through direct application.
As Associate Professor of Finance Yun Liu explains, “Depending on the project, they might draw on scientific, business, engineering, or regulatory knowledge to solve practical problems and deepen particular subject matter expertise.”
Whether they're building computational pipelines, evaluating gene-editing targets, or designing guardrails for AI-driven tools, students gain technical and analytical agility that sustains their long-term success in industry.
Durable Skills and Professional Development
Beyond acquiring technical ability, students develop the professional competencies that employers seek, including project management, communication, collaboration, and time management. Students also learn to become adaptable to new environments, make data-driven decisions, and identify their strengths and areas for improvement.
Steven Casper, professor of management and MBS program director, notes that this professional engagement motivates students to master fundamental skills they’ll rely on throughout their careers, including:
- Setting agendas
- Reporting on a project’s progress
- Structuring high-quality deliverables
- Presenting to executives
- Collaborating across disciplines
Mentorship and Industry Connections
Throughout each industry-sponsored project, students receive personalized mentorship from faculty advisors and corporate liaisons. Whether they need support with technical decision-making or advice to overcome communication challenges, students can draw from their expertise and gain a deeper understanding of diverse perspectives.
The impact of these relationships continues long after the project ends. Many students turn these connections into internships, ongoing partnerships, and full-time positions, helping launch their careers after graduation.
Career Confidence and Readiness
One of the most valuable benefits for students is the confidence and career clarity they acquire throughout their journey. By collaborating with industry professionals, making meaningful contributions to their sponsors, and adapting to dynamic environments, students gain firsthand insight into what it’s like to work in biotech, healthcare, and engineering workplaces.
Equipped with this experience, they can chart a professional path that aligns with their goals and inspires them to innovate.
For Companies
But students aren’t the only ones who gain meaningful outcomes. The companies and organizations that participate in these types of projects also receive many benefits, such as:
- Fresh, objective perspectives and creative solutions from graduate students to help tackle current problems
- A cost-effective way to outsource or increase bandwidth for more projects within your organization
- Early access to emerging talent, which helps you identify top students as future hires
- Leadership development opportunities for company liaisons through mentoring and team supervision
- A meaningful way to support the next generation of industry leaders and invest in their futures
For corporate sponsors interested in collaborating with KGI, Loren Martin, associate vice provost of Research, Innovation & Partnerships, explains, “KGI is very pro-industry when it comes to the protection of corporate intelligence and intellectual property. Our TMP, Industry PhD, and Sponsored Research programs all allow the corporate sponsors to keep 100% of the intellectual property developed as a result of their sponsored projects.”
Want to become one of Keck Graduate Institute’s industry sponsors? Learn more about our Team Master’s Project program and how to become a partner!
What Role Do Faculty Members Play?
Faculty are integral in guiding students through industry-sponsored projects, ensuring they produce high-quality work and transition from academic environments to professional workplaces with confidence.
At KGI, faculty members help navigate shifting project scopes and make complex technical decisions. They become mentors, evaluators, and strategic sounding boards who provide structure and insight without limiting creativity. Importantly, they also support students in meeting their corporate sponsors’ expectations and submit a deliverable that aligns with their end goals.
How Do Industry-Sponsored Projects Challenge Students?
Industry-sponsored projects challenge students by pushing them beyond the classroom scenarios and requiring them to generate practical solutions, work through interpersonal conflicts, and make strategic decisions.
According to Animesh Ray, a W. M. Keck Foundation Professor of Systems, Computational, and Molecular Biology, TMPs empower students to “think like consultants rather than students taking a course.” While many students don’t encounter this critical step in their professional development until after graduation, those who participate in industry-sponsored projects get a head start on turning classroom knowledge into real-world experience.
Ray also explains that TMPs challenge students to “work effectively in teams. Each has its own solution, and one thing they have in common is the lack of a single answer. Thus, the approach to take is to optimize decision-making [amid] uncertainty.”
Liu echoes this idea, noting that ”One of the biggest challenges students face in industry-sponsored projects is learning to navigate ambiguity. Many start out looking for a clear 'answer key,' but real-world projects rarely come with one. Instead, students must learn to define the problem, shape the project, and develop innovative approaches.”
She adds, “Team dynamics can also be challenging—balancing workload, resolving conflicts, and keeping communication open.” These dynamics reflect the complexities of professional environments, where teamwork and accountability play a crucial role in project success.
How KGI Champions Student Success
To support students through these challenges, KGI provides:
- Workshops on project management and planning
- Learning modules focused on stakeholder communication
- Check-ins with faculty members to refine their deliverables
- Guidance for defining team roles and expectations
- Connection with company liaisons to stay aligned with the company's needs
Together, these supports help students build confidence in navigating ambiguity, collaborating effectively, and producing industry-ready work—skills that are essential for success in the life sciences and engineering fields.
How Industry-Sponsored Projects Spark Innovation
When graduate students and industry partners collaborate, the results often exceed expectations. To explore what KGI teams have built, solved, and delivered, use our TMP Project Search.
Creating a Data Analytics Tool for Kite Pharma
In the 2022–23 academic year, one of the KGI student teams partnered with Kite Pharma’s Global Quality Control department to develop a new data analytics dashboard. Their original plan relied on JMP Live, but early in the project, they learned the software wasn’t an option due to licensing restrictions. But KGI’s students are quick-thinking. Instead, they created a new solution by designing and coding an HTML-based dashboard from scratch.
“This pivot pushed them to quickly learn new tools, think creatively, and deliver a scalable, user-friendly product.” Liu continues, ”They also developed internal training materials and worked closely with Kite’s liaisons to ensure smooth adoption. The partnership was so successful that Kite sponsored another TMP the following year and hired one of the students, who went on to serve as the corporate liaison for the next project.”
Advancing Pipeline Strategy for Amgen’s Commercial Insights Team
In years past, the Commercial Insights team at Amgen sponsored a Team Master’s Project at KGI, tasking a team of students with developing a comprehensive analysis of the bispecific antibody pipeline for blood cancers.
Casper explains, “As there were hundreds of bispecific antibodies being developed for this therapeutic area, the team was challenged to develop sophisticated analysis using data management and data visualization tools and learned to use large clinical trial pipeline databases.“
Not only did the students’ work provide Amgen with data-driven insights to inform strategic decision-making, but the experience also helped them build advanced data analytics skills and secure strong job placements—including roles at Amgen, Bain, and other prominent organizations.
Tap into Your Potential at Keck Graduate Institute
Ready to launch your career? KGI’s graduate programs and unique industry-sponsored approach deliver an education grounded in skill acquisition and real-world experience. Through our Team Master’s Project program and industry-sponsored tracks, you forge essential professional connections while supporting prominent companies.
Discover which KGI program is right for you. Or, if you’re ready to take the next step, begin your application today!