We describe our experiences using a research apprenticeship model, specifically the tripartite model, as an example of how we teach and work with doctoral students. The apprenticeship complements students' formal course work and introduces them to research and scholarship processes useful for their future roles as rehabilitation counselor educators and researchers. Although various rehabilitation doctoral institutions use some form of apprenticeship experience, the description of these capstone experiences is absent in our literature. Here we provide information about apprenticeship models, introduce a partnership called Project Excellence as an example, and discuss how we use that project as a formal platform for research apprenticeship training in our doctoral program. (Contains 1 figure.)