Student-run
Chapter leadership are UMD students. They recruit the cohort, teach the foundations, run every meeting, and match teams with advisors.
The University of Maryland Chapter
Quantum research, at the flagship.
Do Quantum at UMD is the original chapter of a free, nonprofit research program, in College Park. In one academic year, it takes you from curious about quantum computing to real, mentored research, presented at our end-of-year symposium.
Free for every UMD student. Cohort applications open each fall, in September.
- 0Researchers here last year
- 0Research teams
- 0Acceptance, for anyone genuinely interested
- 0Cost to join, no dues, no fees
One of three chapters, with UCLA and UVA
The Chapter
Run by students, backed by a nonprofit.
Every Do Quantum chapter runs the same program, the same two tracks, and the same standards. This is the chapter where that program was built and proven first.
In person
Quantum is learned with people. Track meetings happen weekly and face to face, because a great cohort cannot be built any other way.
Free, for anyone
Backed by the nonprofit Do Quantum Inc. No dues and no prerequisites: genuine interest gets you in, and consistent interest is what keeps you here.
The shape of a team.
However the year starts, it converges on the same unit of work: a small team, a clear question, and an advisor who has done this before.
- Team size
- About four researchers, built around a single well-defined research question.
- Advisors
- Every team meets its advisor weekly. Most advisors are PhD students, alongside faculty and other experienced researchers.
- Usual majors
- Computer science, physics, electrical and computer engineering, and mathematics, but any major can join. Everyone starts with the same mathematical grounding.
- Real hardware
- Teams with a qualified project run their work on real quantum hardware through the cloud.
The Year
September to symposium, one step at a time.
This is the arc every member follows. Step through it.
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September
Applications open.
Cohort applications open each fall, in September. Anyone genuinely interested is accepted, and it costs nothing. Come meet the chapter and apply.
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Early fall
Learn the foundations.
A rigorous, hands-on introduction to the mathematics behind every quantum project. No prior quantum experience is expected; the foundations exist so nobody needs it.
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Fall
Choose a track.
Specialize in algorithms, designing and benchmarking quantum algorithms, or architecture, using software to design and test better quantum hardware.
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Mid fall
Form a team.
Warm up with a short project in pairs, then build a final team of about four around one well-defined research question.
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Late fall
Meet your advisor.
Your team is matched with an experienced researcher, most often a PhD student or a faculty member. From here on, you meet with them every week.
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Spring
Do the research.
The spring belongs to the work: building, testing, analyzing, and being wrong on the way to being right, with your team and advisor beside you.
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Spring
Present across chapters.
Each track elects a representative team to present its progress to another chapter, so work from College Park gets an audience at UCLA and Virginia, and theirs gets one here.
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End of year
The symposium.
Package the year into a paper and a poster, and present at the Quantum Research Symposium to faculty, industry, and peers. Elected teams give stage talks.
September
Applications open.
Cohort applications open each fall, in September. Anyone genuinely interested is accepted, and it costs nothing. Come meet the chapter and apply.
Two Tracks
Specialize in algorithms or architecture.
Within either track, you can explore what's possible, what quantum may one day make real, or create value today on problems that matter now.
Algorithms
Develop and test new quantum algorithms. Researchers design, implement, and benchmark algorithms, probing what quantum computers will eventually make possible, or finding advantage on problems that matter now.
Explore what's possible
Create value today
Architecture
Use software to design and test larger, more accurate quantum hardware systems. Researchers model and simulate hardware, exploring the architectures of the future, or improving the fidelity and scale of systems today.
Explore what's possible
Create value today
From The Symposium
Research that came out of this chapter.
A sample of team projects presented at the chapter's Quantum Research Symposium.
- Machine learning
- WALMO, a quantum BERT. Hybrid sentiment analysis that replaces BERT's attention dot products with parameterized quantum circuits.
- Optimization
- Quantum machine learning on topological spaces. Benchmarking projection against Riemannian optimizers for training quantum models.
- Hardware readout
- Fidelity and scalability in superconducting architectures. Nanobolometer readout, gap-graded Josephson junctions, and a hybrid classifier for cleaner measurement.
- Compilers
- An optimal compiler for neutral-atom systems. Waksman-style qubit routing with O(√n log n) movement overhead.
- Security
- Post-quantum pharmacovigilance. ML-KEM and ML-DSA securing a healthcare data pipeline against quantum-era attacks.
- Operations research
- Optimizing the global plasma supply chain. A digital-twin simulation benchmarking classical MILP against quantum QUBO formulations.
The Members
We say researchers. We mean members.
Everyone in the cohort does research, because that is how you get competent. But research is not the only place competence leads, and we built this for more than one kind of person.
Researchers
Go deep on one question with your team, publish honest work, and keep going: members can continue with Do Quantum the next year, or carry the work into graduate research.
Founders
Some members are here to start companies. The program gives them the field's real problems, the discipline of testing an idea against evidence, and people who love discovery to build with.
Careers
Some are here for internships, a first job, and a network in quantum. Competence is what gets hired, and members have already turned it into quantum computing internships.
From interested, to competent, to compensated, whatever compensated means to you.
The Network
One program, three campuses.
A chapter is never on its own. The same program runs to the same bar at UCLA, Maryland, and Virginia, and the work travels between them.
UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
Visit the chapterUMD
University of Maryland, College Park
UVA
University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Visit the chapterProven here.
The results the whole program points to came out of College Park.
0 teams · 0 researchers
In a single year, this chapter ran 18 research teams of 73 researchers, each guided by an advisor and a clearly scoped objective.
2nd place, twice
At the 2025 Global Industry Challenge, presented at Quantum World Congress, teams from this chapter were runners-up in two of five industry challenges, against 88 teams from 24 countries: MITRE's infrastructure track (molecular simulation) and the life-sciences track (computational biology).
Credit & careers
Participants here have earned course credit for research practicum and moved into quantum computing internships and continued research.
FAQs
Before you ask.
The questions every new member asks first.
Do I need to know quantum already?
No. The program starts from the mathematics up, and the foundations are built so that no prior quantum experience is needed. Genuine interest is the only prerequisite.
What does it cost?
Nothing. Do Quantum is a nonprofit and the program is free at every chapter: no dues, no fees, ever.
Who can join?
Any UMD student genuinely interested in quantum computing, from any major, undergraduate or graduate.
How much time does it take?
A weekly track meeting, a weekly hour with your team and advisor, and the work you choose to put in between. Consistent interest matters more than raw hours.
Can I continue after the year?
Yes. Researchers can continue with Do Quantum the next year. At Maryland, continuing members meet weekly in person, the hour before each track meeting, open to anyone able to attend.
When can I apply?
Applications open each fall, in September. In the meantime, join the Discord or get in touch, and we will point you to the chapter's interest meetings.
Free · Any major · In person at UMD
Do Quantum
at UMD.
Cohort applications open each fall, in September. The Discord is where the community lives in the meantime.