Polsky Commercialization Fellowship Gives PhD Students Dedicated Support to Pursue Entrepreneurship
The Polsky Commercialization Fellowship offers PhD students at the University of Chicago the opportunity to create new ventures around promising research and develop leadership skills during a competitive fellowship.
“We created this new fellowship to give PhD students the opportunity to dedicate focused time to exploring entrepreneurship. With the support of their faculty advisors, these students are working toward bringing some of the University’s most promising research from the lab to the world,” said Samir Mayekar, associate vice president and managing director of the Polsky Center.
The structured, milestone-driven program supports students in translating their research into real-world impact through a comprehensive 11-month experience. It is designed to teach PhD students how to apply and commercialize their research, while giving them and their faculty advisors access to targeted venture creation resources and networking opportunities through the Polsky Center.
“The inaugural cohort of fellows has embraced the entrepreneurial process throughout the program. They’ve started to think about their science in a new way and are open and eager to learn from one another and the different experts they’ve worked with,” said Ellen Zatkowski, director of science programs and student engagement. “The Polsky team will continue to support the students and their new ventures as they move their ideas forward, and we are excited to continue growing this fellowship.”
Cohort 1 Fellows:
// Christopher Basile | Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
- Technology: Platform using split RNA polymerase system to encode genes for protein in bacteriophage to select and replicate specific proteins with applications in drug development
- Advisor: Bryan Dickinson, professor, Physical Sciences Division
// Joseph Federico | Biological Sciences Division
- Technology: Therapeutic to relieve symptoms of T cell mediated autoimmunity, specifically in celiac disease
- Advisors: Samantha Riesenfeld, assistant professor of molecular engineering and medicine, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Bana Jabri, professor of medicine, Biological Sciences Division
// Frank Gao | Physical Sciences Division
- Technology: Computational methods to disentangle biological signals into interpretable components, providing insights into cellular decision-making process using single-cell RNA sequencing data with use cases in drug discovery and personalized medicine
- Advisors: Samantha Riesenfeld, assistant professor of molecular engineering and medicine, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Suri Vaikuntanathan, professor, Physical Sciences Division
// Shankar Menon | Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
- Technology: Atom array-based quantum computing system, enabling interconnected quantum computing
- Advisor: Hannes Bernien, University of Innsbruck (previously Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering)
// Jaehee Park | Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
- Technology: Diagnostic tool for battery health integrating electrochemical data with advanced CT image analysis using AI/ML techniques
- Advisor: Shirley Meng, Liew Family Professor in Molecular Engineering, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
// Olivia Zbihley | Biological Sciences Division
- Technology: Multiplex small RNA sequencing platform with applications as a diagnostic or prognostic tool in a variety of disease areas
- Advisor: Tao Pan, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, Biological Sciences Division
Applications for the next cohort are due Monday, April 28th. Attend an upcoming info session on April 9th to learn more about the program and other opportunities for PhD students and postdocs.
// Questions? Contact Ellen Zatkowski, Director, Science Programs and Student Engagement.