The Western Alliance to Expand Student Opportunities (WAESO) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF) funded consortium of 13 educational institutions across Arizona, Utah, and Colorado, with the lead institution being Arizona State University. The WAESO program works to broaden the participation of students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) research at the undergraduate student level, as is consistent with the goal of the overall NSF LSAMP program. Furthermore, the WAESO program seeks to prepare students for advanced STEM degrees.