RISE is a summer internship program for undergraduate students from the United States, Canada and the UK in the fields of biology, chemistry, physics, earth sciences and engineering. It offers unique opportunities for undergraduate students to work with research groups at universities and top research institutions across Germany for a period of 1.5 to 3 months during the summer. RISE interns are matched with doctoral students whom they assist and who serve as their mentors. The working language will be English. All scholarship holders receive stipends from the DAAD to help cover living expenses, while partner universities and research institutes provide housing assistance.

RISE internships were first offered in 2005 to applicants from the US and Canada. Following the first intake of around 100 students in 2005, the number of participants has increased steadily. In 2009 as many as 364 candidates (out of 1,149 applicants) were awarded an internship. Due to its great success, the program has now been extended to the UK.