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Polsky Commercialization Fellowship

The Polsky Commercialization Fellowship offers PhD STEM students at the University of Chicago the opportunity to create new ventures around promising research and develop leadership skills during a competitive fellowship. The structured, milestone-driven program supports students in translating their research into real-world impact through a comprehensive 8-month experience.

Fellows are enabled to facilitate the technical and commercial development of the University’s most promising scientific research and help achieve the Polsky Center’s mission to bring new ideas and breakthrough research to market.

The fellowship 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. Fellows dedicate ~250 hours to developing their projects over the course of the fellowship period (July 2026 – March 2027) and receive a stipend.

Benefits of Participating

  • Entrepreneurial Programming: Develop an understanding for the real-world impact of scientific innovation; explore the foundations of an entrepreneurial venture; and gain exposure to promising career options in entrepreneurship and research commercialization.
  • Dedicated Support and Networking: Access dedicated workspace in the Polsky Center’s offices with streamlined access to industry experts and Polsky’s ecosystem network; receive mentorship and coaching on a variety of essential business development topics from Polsky Center staff and coaches through regular goal-setting meetings.
  • Interdisciplinary Cohort: Engage with Polsky Commercialization Fellows from STEM programs across multiple fields of study.
  • Talent and Funding: Receive support for sourcing business talent to help create and launch a team out of the lab, for pursuing early-stage sources of grants and seed funding, including access to the George Shultz Innovation Fund, which invests up to $250,000 in startups.

Key Dates and Deadlines

Applications are currently closed.

Application and Eligibility

  • University of Chicago PhD candidates who have completed qualifying exams and will be enrolled as full-time students throughout the fellowship
  • Candidate is currently working on research project or technology that they are actively seeking to commercialize
  • Candidate must have letter of support from faculty advisor and confirmation of good academic standing from Dean of Students

Cohort 1 Fellows (2024-2025)

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

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