Ava Polzin

I’m a PhD candidate in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago, where I am co-advised by Andrey Kravtsov and Hsiao-Wen Chen. My research focuses broadly on galaxy evolution and more specifically on star formation and the baryon cycle in low mass, low metallicity galaxies.

A lifelong resident of the Chicago area, I graduated from Northwestern University in 2018 with a degree in Physics and a minor in Earth & Planetary Sciences after a couple-of-year detour to Los Angeles to learn from, and work under, the best of the best in the music industry. After college, I started my PhD at Yale University before transferring to UChicago (with candidacy) to move closer to family amid the COVID-19 pandemic. When I’m not engaged in the usual graduate student activities (research, teaching, etc.), I’m wholly committed to outreach to underrepresented groups in STEM.