Graduation of students

Polygence Research Project College Admission Stats

Polygence’s mission is to empower the next generation of students to take control of their education. Let these metrics speak for our students' success in their college admissions!

Our programs and mentors help students to develop essential academic skills, make informed decisions about what to study, and to prepare for meaningful careers.

In addition to these holistic benefits, research and passion projects also have a material impact on college applications. This year we surveyed more than 590 alumni who applied to college in 2023 to understand the impact of their research projects on their college admissions outcomes.

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Polygence College Admissions Report

In the 2022-2023 College Application cycle, Polygence alumni demonstrated how valuable independent research and passion projects are to the admissions process. The following report synthesizes results from 590 of our students who applied to the college class of 2027. Submit the form to access the full report!

Key takeaways:

  • 99% of Polygence Alumni feature projects on College Apps

  • 9 out of 15 Admissions Officers from Top Colleges say research experience weighs favorably in college applications

  • Up to 5x higher college acceptance rate than the national average at elite universities

Polygence College Admissions Report cover image

Polygence Alumni College Admissions Stats

99% of Polygence Alumni features their project on college applications

of Polygence Alumni feature projects on College Apps

9/15 Admissions Officers Say Research Helps

Admissions Officers from Top Colleges say research helps

Polygence improves Admissions Chances 5x

Polygence Alumni have up to 5x greater admissions chances at top institutions

Admissions Rates at Select Elite Institutions

Polygence Admissions Stats

Where were Polygence alumni accepted?

Admissions Rates at R1 schools and US News Top 25 Universities

92%

Polygence alumni acceptance rate to R1 schools in 2023

91%

Blended pre 2022 and 2022 rate

51%

Acceptance rate to US News Top 25 Universities

Including:
UC Berkeley (78), UCLA (36), Cornell (22), Emory (20), UPenn (18), Rice (17), Carnegie Mellon (17), Duke (14), Northwestern (14), Johns Hopkins (14), Brown (12), Georgetown (10), University of Chicago (10), Yale (8), Columbia (8), Washington University in St. Louis (8), NYU (8), Harvard (6), Stanford (6), Princeton (6), Dartmouth (5), CalTech (5), Vanderbilt (4), Notre Dame (3), MIT (1)

Ivy League and Top 10 Liberal Arts Colleges

24%

Polygence alumni acceptance rate to Ivies

5.4%

Average general applicant acceptance rate to Ivies

24%

Polygence alumni accepted to Top 10 Liberal Arts Colleges

Accepted schools: 

Pomona, Swarthmore, Claremont McKenna, Williams, Amherst, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Carleton

Polygence alumni acceptance rates at other prestigious schools

33%

UC Berkeley acceptance rate

29%

CalTech acceptance rate

19%

Cornell acceptance rate

24%

University of Chicago acceptance rate

What do Polygence alumni say about their projects?

My Polygence project gave me confidence in knowing that I have the ability to tackle higher quality research at the collegiate level. This experience with research also gave me a different perspective compared to others.

UC Berkeley badge

[My project] helped motivate me to do research into what I really enjoyed about STEM and led me to the major I am planning to go in. Polygence helped me figure out what I wanted to do in college which made my essays more genuine.

Cornell University badge

Polygence helped me shape my application that was more focused towards my major, demonstrating to the admissions counselors that I am passionate about what I intend to study. It gave me an opportunity to explore a niche topic that I am interested in, showing more depth in my academic interests. In my Rice admissions package, they send a personalized message to every admitted student, and my message was talking about how they are excited to see how my experience in the research that l chose will shape the Rice community!

Rice University badge

It gave me confidence in the major I chose and gave me insight as to what I will be learning as an Aerospace Engineering Major. Thank you Polygence!

Virginia Tech badge

The Impact of Polygence

Since our founding in 2019, over 2000 students from
44 countries have completed a Polygence project.

World map of countries from where Polygence has students

Interested in starting 
your own project? 
Apply today!

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