i-Lab (Integration Lab)

i-Lab (Integration Lab)

Partnerships that build solutions

Leaders at every level need the best available information relevant to the problems they’re trying to solve—and the i-Lab provides that information through rigorous research that is accessible and usable. The i-Lab process trains students how to work in diverse teams to accelerate evidence to impact and deliver more effective policies and programs by forging links between practitioners and policymakers and those they serve.

i-Lab curriculum

The i-Lab experience unfolds over three semesters and is designed to build the skills, expertise, and relationships that nurture creative solutions to a partner’s challenges.

  • Semester 1: Immersion in approaches to global challenges
  • Semester 2: Choosing a global partner
  • Summer: Fieldwork
  • Semester 3: Producing output

Explore the i-Lab Curriculum


i-Lab Projects

You will choose a student team and global partner organization to work with. Together, you will design a project and produce an output—a report, operational model, app, or any number of other option—that helps your global partner meet a challenge.

Explore the projects currently underway in the i-Lab:


Global Partners

The core of the i-Lab experience is partnership building. Our students, advised by Notre Dame faculty, develop close relationships with each other and with key organizations that tackle today’s most pressing challenges. Together they explore, innovate, and build useful solutions.

Would your organization benefit from a Keough School i-Lab partnership? We invite you to learn more.

Information for Global Partners


i-Lab Co-Directors

Guided by i-Lab directors Tracy Kijewski-Correa and Melissa Paulsen, you’ll work with other students, global partners, and faculty-mentors in multiple disciplines to address real-world issues and challenges.

Tracy Kijewski-Correa headshot

Tracy Kijewski-Correa

William J. Pulte Director, Pulte Institute for Global Development; Professor of Engineering and Global Affairs; Academic Director, Integration Lab

Melissa Paulsen

Entrepreneurship and Education Program Director; Integration Lab Administrative Director; and Professor of the Practice

Faculty & Staff

Your i-Lab experience will be supported by a dedicated team of Keough School faculty and staff members, providing expertise and guidance as you navigate your Global Partner Experience.