Testimonials

Student Testimonials

"You can't imagine the happiness you will have when you know that you have proved Quadratic Reciprocity without ANY external help or source or reference, ALL BY YOURSELF!" Deepta Basak, Mehta Fellow to PROMYS 2019 and 2020

“At PROMYS, students don’t just learn mathematics, they learn how to think.”
“For anyone who wants to know the beauty of maths, let me tell you, PROMYS is the best place."
“Mathematically, rigor and thinking deeply of simple things are the most important things I learnt. Apart from that, I learnt that mathematics is a lot more collaborative than it seems to be.”
“The habit of questioning everything and not taking anything for granted helped me not only in math but also in general problem solving.”
"PROMYS is truly a wonderful program, students not only learn a whole lot of mathematics but also learn how to approach mathematics in a much more exploratory manner. It is very intensive but also a very rewarding experience."
"In my school, getting a correct answer is all that matters - but in PROMYS, it was rather our work and interest that mattered - our willingness to work with others and trying to find answers. It was the process that was important."
"PROMYS was the first time I got an opportunity to learn from excellent faculty and work with such intellectually curious counselors and peers. The rigorous schedule enriched me with the enthusiasm for discovery, as I was able to understand the concepts of number theory through the intriguing lectures and my work on the problem sets. I was taught “To think deeply about simple things”, which was about discovering the topic to its deepest… I hope to stay connected to the wonderful people involved."
"I didn't expect any summer program would be that intense. It not only developed my mathematical way of thinking but also my persistence level was enhanced drastically... During the program I was able to make some life-long friendships with Mehta Fellows with some of them being so close that we have already started working on projects… People here are always ready to help each other, and all of them are very down to earth."
"PROMYS challenged me in more ways than I could have imagined. I struggled and made mistakes and left tear stains on my problem sets, but I would do it all over again because this past summer at PROMYS has been the most mathematically enriching, rigorous, and, ultimately, satisfying experience I've ever had."
“Usually, in our school days, we are taught what is written in books and the same comes in exams and we don’t think much about that, but I think PROMYS is like the beginning of a phase where you can think on your own and give your ideas, and learn how a mathematician thinks and gives his theories.”
"Believe me, in short, fun is the synonym of PROMYS and boredom is the antonym of PROMYS... At PROMYS, one learns to 'Think deeply about simple things.' One also learns, the true essence of mathematical rigor and as to why it is so important." Read Sanket's full testimonial
“PROMYS was a real eye-opener for me. It taught me how to understand every detail clearly and not be blinded by assumed knowledge. The saying 'Think Deeply of Simple Things' carries a deeper meaning than you can imagine." Read Deepta's full testimonial
“The counselors are always around and one can approach them anytime anywhere. However the best thing is that no one would give away major hints and spoil all the fun." Read Senjuti's full testimonial
"PROMYS has been a very distinctive experience for the sake it was non-competitive. Most of the programs that I have attended were competitive." Read Arghya's full testimonial
"I found it fascinating that we could prove some very important theorems in number theory by referring back to the problems in previous problem sets." Read Kalyani's full testimonial
“I'd never been away from my parents for that long before. I met many people with similar interests and hobbies and made good friends with them. PROMYS was way more social than I expected and I had a great time." Read Druhin's full testimonial
"The depth of math at PROMYS is remarkable, wherein we write proofs in the most rigorous fashion possible, which inculcates in us a very important skill as a mathematician. Overall, it’s an experience that is one of a kind, and something that I will always remember throughout my life." Read Siddhant's full testimonial
“PROMYS is more than just a summer program - It is an experience that will change your life. The path of discovery that one follows as a student of PROMYS is unique and will change your perception of mathematics." Read Siddharth's full testimonial
"I learnt the importance of making bold conjectures, and the role that long cumbersome yet interesting numerical examples play in it. PROMYS is a place for math lovers. Being a First Year Fellow at PROMYS will remain an unforgettable experience for me." Read Arpoitri's full testimonial
"Since the program is so intensive and so well structured, one actually feels the heavenly bliss of reasoning at every step... This gave the feeling of a real mathematician - experimenting with numbers, conjecturing some beautiful lemmas and theorems, and proving some of them." Read Nilava's full testimonial
"The PROMYS community was very much welcoming and supportive. I'll definitely stay in touch with them." Read Medha's full testimonial
"The exposure, the rigour, the way of approach we learn here in unparalleled. The Number Theory lectures were world-class, and the problem sets were the heart of the enrichment of the program." " Read Aman's full testimonial
"The program was collaborative not competitive, which made it unique. Everyone in PROMYS had exceptional mathematical talent and I made a ton of new friends." Read Devansh's full testimonial
"I was kind of anti-social before PROMYS, but here I talked to a lot to other students and counselors, who have come from different parts of the world, not just about maths but also about their lives in general, and now I can talk to people a lot more freely." Read Anupam's full testimonial
"PROMYS has given me a new perspective to Mathematics. The lectures taught me to chase simplicity and elegance instead of complexity. The problem sets pushed me to frontiers I had never explored or even knew existed." Read Adit's full testimonial
"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." Read Arya's full testimonial
"In PROMYS, the problem sets are designed in such a way that one would keep discovering theorems on their own.. That provides extreme pleasure to any math-lover kid. And during the course of 6 weeks, we almost become a family. ." Read Soumen's full testimonial
"I have grown up doing competitive math for Olympiads. When I came to PROMYS 2015 as a first year, it showed me a new way of learning mathematics. PROMYS helped me to understand, how to build our own mathematics." Read Sabir's full testimonial
"PROMYS was a refreshing take on learning mathematics that was so different from the routine competition maths that most people have done before. The program opened new doors for me. I feel lucky to be part of a community where everyone is so dedicated towards doing mathematics. It was great being surrounded by people as excited by the subject as I was. I am extremely grateful to all the sponsors for the excellent 6 weeks."
“PROMYS has been the most mathematically intense experience of my life…Be it my roommate, my counsellor or any other person in general, it didn't feel like I was talking to people from different countries around the world. It felt like everyone there was just like me, a simple guy who loves math… it’s the most fun I've ever had. I'm very grateful to Morph.org and the PROMYS Foundation for giving me this wonderful opportunity of exploring the beautiful subject that is mathematics."
"I think this is the only summer camp for budding mathematicians where the need for rigorous proof is realized. At PROMYS we were made to prove many things that were simple but not at all easy. The words uttered by Prof. Glenn Stevens are imprinted upon my heart 'Simple is not equal to easy'… The other thing that I like about PROMYS is that we were never told the solutions of the problem set as this helps to increase our creativity and problem solving abilities… When we solve a problem ourselves this can also lead to an unconventional and more elegant solution to the problem. Even if that solution is lengthy that will give us a lot of contentment because that is our own solution."
“It is quite astounding to imagine that just six weeks would provide me such an extensive introduction to the world of research mathematics, but through PROMYS, I was fully empowered with an appreciation for the beauty of mathematics. The rigorous nature of PROMYS enriched me with the pride of discovery, as I was able to unveil the secrets of number theory and other advanced topics through my work on the problem sets and by attending intriguing lectures. PROMYS is an intensive journey in mathematics that emphasizes rigor and promotes learning. For me, PROMYS was the highlight of my high school years, an invigorating experience that enlightened me with the glory and revelations of mathematics.”
"PROMYS was fantastic! It introduced me to higher mathematics at a young age and taught me to think like a mathematician. I carried this with me in every job I've had since, as a Statistician, Astrophysicist, and Applied Mathematician."
"Through mathematical rigor, we were guided to understand the structures of different mathematical systems. Through the coalescence of seemingly distant notions, we recognized the beauty of mathematics. PROMYS was truly an invigorating experience that motivated me to learn more mathematics through discovery."
"When I was a toddler, just learning to count, add, and multiply, I found a deep and profound beauty in the numbers, which appeared all around me. As I grew older, this beauty seemed to fade away, especially in school, where mathematics was unfortunately largely taught by rote practice. PROMYS let me rediscover this beauty in mathematics and explain it. "
“PROMYS made me understand what it means to truly know something, and that there was so much seemingly basic math that I didn't know in this way. PROMYS also made me want to understand things with this type of clarity, and this is something that I'll carry with me, wherever I go. But PROMYS as a mathematical experience is amazingly multidimensional. In addition to the emphasis on developing oneself as a mathematician, there is an incredible community of counselors and campers who help you achieve this. Also, the people at PROMYS are amazing, in pretty much every way there is.”
"The purpose of the program seemed to be, to me, to burrow into the stem cells of mathematics using the eyes and ears of our minds. I fell in love with something I thought I knew all over again. The program achieves its goals spectacularly. ….Even when I wasn’t directly working on mathematics, my brain was swimming it."
"The goal of the program, I think, was to stimulate the minds of young people and expose them to the beauty of mathematics had they never encountered it before, and if they had, to develop their passion for it. I think the program accomplished this very well."

You can read additional testimonials from students and counselors who attended PROMYS at Boston University in the U.S. between 1989 and 2021 HERE on the PROMYS site.