About the Initiative

Mission & Vision

Berkeley Discovery represents a transformative intervention in traditional university education. It promotes an equitable, student-centric journey rooted in self-discovery, critical thinking, creativity, and innovation to create world-ready students who thrive and make an impact in our ever-changing society and the world. 

Berkeley Discovery is committed to inclusivity, breaking barriers to participation and providing access for every student to the transformative opportunities offered across campus.

Goals

Transform learning 

We champion curricular innovation centered around students’ active learning and connecting the classroom experiences with the world around them.  

We promote curricula that incorporate hands-on, experiential learning and collaborative projects; stimulate cross disciplinary perspectives; advocate for integration of new technologies to address current gaps in education; and support flexible learning environments and personalized learning paths.

Catalyze students' creation and innovation

We provide immersive experiences, integrated into academic coursework, to foster students to co-create and innovate with those most engaged and aware in each field.

We support students’ engagement in original research; promote students-led activities; enable the design of new studios and laboratories of ideas for students to explore; we support research-translation labs to transform research outcomes into potential businesses; we provide partnerships with several organizations for students’ internship, community engagement and other high impact learning experiences.

Amplify the impact of Discovery 

We magnify the impact of students’ Discovery learning beyond our campus, by ethically disseminating data-driven knowledge, raising awareness of pressing issues, and cultivating engagement with a broader diverse audience. 

Access to high-impact learning opportunities 

The Discovery Database is a centralized search engine for on- and off-campus opportunities, like research, creative endeavors, internships, entrepreneurship, study abroad and public service. The database also provides information on scholarships and fellowships to financially support students along their Discovery journey.

A graphic showing the elements of the Berkeley Discovery Initiative