As a student: "I have been to the IMO training camp of India in 2016 and 2017. The major difference in PROMYS and IMO training is that each person at IMO is eager to prove that he is better than everybody else, by showing off what theorems he knows, or what problems he has solved. I understand that the IMO camp is supposed to be competitive, but I personally do not find this environment suitable for learning math and developing your thoughts. At PROMYS I received the right nurturing by the counselors, who were always available to guide me and went out of their way to help me out. All the students here are good, but one doesn't feel demoralized if some people know something he/she doesn't. Instead, the person can ask for help and learn the concept himself...
Mathematical rigor is very crucial, but very few programs or courses actually emphasize its importance sufficiently. The importance of rigor was a key thing I learnt at PROMYS. Moreover, I enjoyed the experience of making your own conjectures, working your own inventory of lemmas and proving them, and building number theory from bare bones to higher theorems. The structure of the program, in which you do the problem sets on your own to discover number theory is a very beneficial one... The opportunities for learning and research at PROMYS are endless, and foremost teach you how to learn things the right way - be it number theory or anything else. The PROMYS community is really great and co-operative. This experience is truly worth a summer and more!
PROMYS is the perfect platform for students around the world to enhance their mathematical skills, while at the same time generating a deep understanding about what "learning math" truly means. There is no limit to the mathematics a hungry mind can learn at PROMYS. As a second year student, the assortment of advanced seminars and research were truly enlightening and fun. The counselors and the students are really great and welcoming, and I learnt a lot through the discussions we had. Every year at PROMYS changes you for the better, and I hope to continue having the PROMYS-experience for summers to come!"
As a counselor: "Every summer at PROMYS is a completely different and enriching experience. And this keeps challenging you, motivating you mathematically, and introducing you to some of the best people around the world interested in mathematics. PROMYS is much more than a place to learn number theory; it's a philosophy. And this philosophy has helped me learn and appreciate cool math, and this philosophy is what makes people keep coming back to PROMYS. I met many of the top students and undergraduates from around the world, and our interactions have been very informative and motivating. I hope to continue being a part of the PROMYS programme in summers to come!"
