Students are swiping right to take chances on dates this Valentine’s Day, but a new UW-Madison student organization is using data to pair Badgers together.
Datamatch is a matchmaking service that originally started at Harvard University in 1994. Since then, the service has expanded to multiple universities including Brown, Columbia, Wellesley College and, starting this season of love, UW-Madison.
Students who participate must answer a brief survey containing 17 questions, according to Alex Mahnke, the lead “Cupid” from Datamatch. They can also add a short bio and links to their social media profiles.
Some questions ask for students’ name, gender, the gender you want to match with — including male, female and non-binary options — and class year.
The survey will open Feb. 7, and on Valentine’s Day those who have participated will wake up to an email with 10 matches based on their survey responses, Mahnke said.
The student organization aims to provide a personal and interactive way for people to connect, meet and develop either romantic or platonic relationships with one another.
“This is different from other dating apps because it seems more serious and safe since it’s through a student organization on campus,” said Ada Ezemba, a recent UW-Madison graduate.
Mahnke said Datamatch is specifically different from apps like Tinder and Grindr because you can find platonic matches.
“I’m interested to see how it goes for the first year,” UW-Madison senior Timothy Tran said. “With the friendship element, it seems more meaningful and adds more depth than a normal dating app would.”
To promote interactivity, Datamatch partnered with restaurants like Ian’s Pizza, Nitty Gritty, Tutto Pasta and other local businesses that will offer discounts and deals for those that go on a date and were matched from the survey.
“I love food and discounts, so why not add someone who is matched to you to the mix?” UW-Madison senior Carolyn Meissner said. “There’s a good chance you'll have a good time.”
Datamatch became a popular tradition on other college campuses, and Mahnke hopes the same will happen at UW-Madison just like long-time events like “Fill the Hill” and Lady Liberty on Lake Mendota.
“We hope to bring people together over nothing more than their shared college experience,” Mahnke said.
