Neuroscience Major
The Neuroscience Major is compatible with diverse interests within the field. Students planning to declare a Neuroscience Major must first complete one foundational course in STEM (i.e., BIOL 161, CHEM 181, CSCI 131, MATH 135 or equivalent, NEUR 110, or PHYS 115) and one neuroscience-focused course.
The main emphases of the Neuroscience Major are:
- Principles of Neuroscience and Scientific Inquiry: Neuroscience is concerned with elucidating the principles and physical processes by which diverse nervous systems coordinate organismal function, survival, cognition, and behavior. The main goal of the neuroscience major is to guide students to:
- Describe major principles and processes of nervous system structure and function.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the major modes of neuroscience inquiry at multiple levels of analysis (genetic, molecular, cellular, circuit, systems, behavioral, and cognitive).
- Demonstrate the ability to critically read and discuss neuroscience literature.
- Broad-based Proficiency in STEM: As an integrative discipline, neuroscience draws on knowledge and tools from multiple STEM disciplines (biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, physics, psychology, etc.) and applies them to understanding the structure and function of nervous systems at all levels of analysis. A secondary learning goal of the neuroscience major is to guide students to demonstrate an understanding of relevant concepts from the natural and quantitative sciences and their application in the integrative discipline of neuroscience.
- Theoretical Grounding in the Assumptions of Scientific Inquiry: Fundamental questions in neuroscience confront the mind-body problem, involve concepts that are not defined in physical terms (e.g., mind, memory, intention, and emotion), and pertain to the understanding of organismal life and human nature. Exposure to psychological theory and philosophical approaches to critiquing the assumptions and application of the scientific method is a distinction of a liberal arts neuroscience education. A higher-order goal of the major is to support the intellectually sound application of neuroscience to address fundamental questions and societal challenges.
Requirements
Majors must take 14 courses observing the following rules:
- The major must include at least 2 laboratory or project based courses at the 200+ level (#).
- One semester of research for credit can count as a major requirement (additional neuroscience course, elective, or historical or theoretical perspective course) and/or a laboratory or project-based course (#), subject to review and approval by the Neuroscience Program Director.
- Outside of NEUR courses, the maximum number of courses that may be used from any single department is 4. Foundations in STEM courses and research for credit (400-level) shall not count toward total courses from a department.
- No more than 2 courses may overlap between the neuroscience major and any other academic program (major, minor, or concentration) with the exception of courses in the Foundations in STEM category.
- For courses in the Foundations in STEM category, the corresponding departmental policy regarding AP credit will apply.
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| Foundations in STEM: 6 required courses | |
| These courses cover fundamental principles of STEM disciplines that are required for studying neuroscience. | |
| Introduction to Cell & Molecular Biology | |
| Atoms & Molecules | |
or CSCI 131 | Techniques of Programming |
| Calculus 1 (or equivalent) | |
| Introductory Physics 1: Mechanics, Fluids and Waves | |
| Introductory Physics 2: Electromagnetism, Optics and Modern Physics | |
| Statistics (or equivalent) | |
| Intermediate Neuroscience Core Courses: at least 1 course | |
| These courses cover fundamental principles of neuroscience and reinforce connections between neuroscience and other STEM disciplines. They also introduce students to neuroscience research papers. | |
| Neurobiology Lecture (with or without optional BIOL 270 Neurobiology Lab#) | |
| Neuroethology with Physics # | |
| Neural Circuits & Systems # | |
| Additional Neuroscience Courses: 4 courses, at least one must be an advanced neuroscience course (*) | |
| These courses cover principles and topics in neuroscience. Intermediate Neuroscience Core Courses (listed above) may also count as Additional Neuroscience Courses; students are encouraged to use Intermediate Neuroscience Core Courses to fulfill this requirement. An academic advisor will guide the student in course selection to ensure breadth and depth appropriate for the student’s interests. | |
| Experimental Approaches in Neurobiology * | |
| Computational Vision | |
| Introduction to Neuroscience | |
| History & Theory of Neuroscience * | |
| The Other Half of the Brain: Glial Cells * | |
| Human Electrophysiology *# | |
| Physiology and Behavior | |
| Sensation & Perception | |
| Cognitive Neuroscience | |
| Biology of Mental Disorders * | |
| Drug Abuse: Brain and Behavior * | |
| Neuroanatomy & Behavior *# | |
| Predictive Coding in the Brain * | |
| Cognitive Neuropsychiatry * | |
| Electives: 2 Courses | |
| These courses cover scientific principles and broader topics relevant to neuroscience. Intermediate Neuroscience Core Courses or Additional Neuroscience Courses (listed above) may also count as electives. | |
| Anatomy & Physiology I # | |
| Genetics # | |
| Cell Biology (with or without optional BIOL 268 Cell Biology Lab#) | |
| Evolution | |
| Biochemistry 1 | |
or CHEM 301 | Biochemistry |
| Organic Chemistry 1 # | |
| Organic Chemistry 2 # | |
| Equilibrium & Reactivity # | |
| Data Mining | |
| Artificial Intelligence | |
| Multivariable Calculus | |
| Linear Algebra | |
| Mathematical Methods and Scientific Computing in Physics | |
| Modern Physics (with or without optional PHYS 225 Modern Physics Lab) # | |
| Animal Learning | |
| Animal Minds | |
| Cognition & Memory | |
| Consciousness & Control | |
| Animal Cognition | |
| Experimental Design | |
| Bayesian Statistics | |
| Linear Models | |
| Categorical Data Analysis | |
| Probability Theory | |
| Statistical Computing | |
| Statistical Learning | |
| Historical, Philosophical, and Social Perspectives: 1 course | |
| These courses cover questions about the conduct and purpose of science, the intersection of science and society, or theoretical issues in the scientific study of life and mind. | |
| Gender & Sexualities | |
| Medical Anthropology | |
| Race, Racism and Anthropology | |
| Medicine, Health, and Empire | |
| Nature, Culture, and Power in Global History, 1500-1850 | |
| History of Disease and Healing | |
| Trauma & The Troubled Mind: The Ethics of Trauma | |
| Philosophy of Race | |
| Medical Ethics | |
| Philosophy Of Mind | |
| Philosophy of Science | |
| Philosophy Of Biology | |
| Philosophy Of Medicine | |
| Ethical Issues/Death & Dying | |
| History & Theory | |
| Approaches to Medical Ethics | |
| Science, Medicine & the Holocaust | |
| Theological Perspectives on Medical Ethics | |
| # | Laboratory or project based course at the 200+ level |
| * | Advanced neuroscience course |