If you are interested in participating with the festival by hosting your own event, please visit our event host page for submission instructions. If you would like to connect with an organization in your area to share your science with your community, please reach out to us at info@wiscifest.org – we’d be happy to help connect you with an event host nearby!

2026 Hands-on Expo Volunteer Shifts (limited spots available):

• Thursday, October 15th – Science on the Square (Downtown Madison): 4:30-7:00pm & 6:45-9:15pm
  • Event time: 5:00-9:00pm
• Tuesday, October 20th – Field Trip Expo (Discovery Building): 9:00-11:15am & 11:00am-1:45pm
  • Event time: 9:30am-1:30pm

Additional volunteer opportunities will be posted here as they become available!

Why Volunteer?

• Help others discover the wonder and power of science
• Enjoy a unique program in the Discovery Building or downtown Madison and learn something new
• Network with other volunteers and UW-Madison faculty, staff, and students
• Get a cool #WiSciFest shirt!

Who can volunteer?

Anyone! Science expert or not, new volunteers are always welcome!

• High school and college students (must be at least 18 years of age)
• Adults
• Families
• Corporate and Community Groups

Build a team! Volunteering can be more fun with a friend – let us know if you are volunteering as a group and we will do our best to ensure you can work together. Group opportunities are excellent team building experiences that help you connect with the community.

What do volunteers do at the festival?

You can choose how you want to engage. Options include:

• Welcoming visitors
• Answering questions
• Running programs and experiments
• Assisting with volunteer management
• Prepping for the festival
• and more!

Get started!

Even if you are not a new volunteer, you will need to create a volunteer profile using our volunteer management tool through UW-Madison, VolunteerMatters. While our official sign-up is not yet open, you can fill out our volunteer interest form to be notified when registration becomes available and create your account on VolunteerMatters to easily sign up for shifts once they are published.

For information about volunteering, or to learn more about group/corporate volunteer opportunities, please contact info@wiscifest.org.

How to Sign Up For a Shift

Even if you have volunteered with us in the past, new for 2026 you will need to create a volunteer profile using our new volunteer management tool through UW-Madison, VolunteerMatters. To create your account, please do the following:

• Visit uw.volunteermatters.org/login
• Click ‘Register Now’
• Verify your email address
• Set your password
• Fill out the basic information listed (your contact details will not be publicly available)
• Under ‘Campus’
• Select ‘UW-Madison’
• Under ‘Madison/Extension Primary Volunteering Area’
• Select ‘OVCR’
• Fill out the remaining prompts and click ‘Continue’

You can search for our volunteer opportunities by typing ‘Wisconsin Science Festival’ into the project catalog search bar or by visiting our project page here: https://uw.volunteermatters.org/project-catalog/550.

Banner image by Ueda Photography.