# Polygence

> Polygence is an online research mentorship platform that pairs ambitious high school students one-on-one with PhD-level mentors from institutions like Stanford, MIT, Harvard and Oxford to design and complete an independent research project over roughly 10 sessions. Founded in 2019 by two Stanford PhDs, Janos Perczel and Jin Chow, it turns curiosity into tangible outcomes - published papers, apps, novels, podcasts - and gives students a distinctive credential for college applications. The company now spans a network of 2,000+ mentors across 40+ fields and runs a biannual Symposium of Rising Scholars where students present their work to a global audience.

- **Founded:** 2019
- **Headquarters:** San Francisco, California, United States
- **Founders:** Janos Perczel (Co-Founder & CEO), Jin Yun Chow (Co-Founder & COO)
- **Team size:** Approximately 60-310 (estimates vary across sources; includes core staff plus a large contracted mentor network of 2,000+)
- **Products:** Core Program, Pods, Work Lab, Symposium of Rising Scholars, UCI x GATI College Credit
- **Notable:** Co-founder Jin Chow named to Forbes 30 Under 30 (Education), class of 2023., Grew from a dorm-room MVP in 2019 to a network of 2,000+ mentors across 40+ fields., Backed by Alibaba's Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, Reach Capital, and Northern Light Venture Capital.

## Products & services

- **Core Program** — The flagship one-on-one research mentorship: roughly 10 one-hour sessions with a PhD-level mentor over 3-6 months, culminating in a research paper, app, novel, or other tangible project. Starts around $2,895.
- **Pods** — Small-group, 6-week mini-courses (six weekly one-hour sessions) on focused topics, priced around $495 - a lower-cost on-ramp to mentored learning.
- **Work Lab** — An industry mentorship program that pairs students with professionals to build real-world, career-relevant skills beyond academic research.
- **Symposium of Rising Scholars** — A biannual academic conference where Polygence students present original research to peers, families and academics across STEM, computer science and humanities tracks.
- **UCI x GATI College Credit** — An optional add-on partnership pathway (around $1,800) allowing students to earn college credit for their research work.
- **Showcasing Support** — Premium guidance to help students publish papers, submit to journals, present at conferences, or otherwise share and amplify their project outcomes.

## Achievements

- Co-founder Jin Chow named to Forbes 30 Under 30 (Education), class of 2023.
- Grew from a dorm-room MVP in 2019 to a network of 2,000+ mentors across 40+ fields.
- Backed by Alibaba's Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, Reach Capital, and Northern Light Venture Capital.
- Runs the biannual Symposium of Rising Scholars; its seventh edition featured a record 193 live student presenters plus 69 asynchronous presentations.
- Helped students publish papers, launch apps, and present research to global audiences.

## Latest updates

- **2025-11** — Fall 2025 Symposium of Rising Scholars featured roughly 150 student presenters from around the world.
- **2025-01** — Published its 2025 program brochure and expanded pricing/format options including Pods and Work Lab.
- **2023-11** — Co-founder Jin Chow named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 class of 2023 in Education.

## Links

- Website: https://polygence.org
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/polygence
- Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/polygence/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@polygence
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/polygence/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/polygence/

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/polygence
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-03