Our neuroscience major provides a fundamental understanding of brain function that emerges from knowledge of the interplay of the molecular, cellular and systems–level operation of the nervous system. Our distinguished faculty also teach excellent upper division courses in areas of expertise that include, but are not limited to, learning and memory, addiction, mental illness, stress, neuroendocrinology, neurogenetics and neurocircuits of motivated behavior.
Requirements
Prerequisites
It is policy to enforce the course prerequisites listed in the course descriptions. If a student has not either taken and passed (C- or better) the prerequisites for a course, or obtained permission from the instructor or a departmental advisor to take the course based on equivalent preparatory coursework or experience here or elsewhere, the student may be administratively dropped from the course.
Degree Requirements
The neuroscience major requires a minimum of 37 credit hours in neuroscience coursework, including a minimum of 21 upper-division credit hours, and additional ancillary foundation coursework.
Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the requirements listed below. Students must fulfill all of the following requirements with a grade of C- or better. None of the courses taken to fill these requirements may be taken pass/fail; courses must be taken for a letter grade. The cumulative GPA in courses that can count toward the major must be at least 2.000. Additional explanatory notes are available in the department advising office, Muenzinger D260.
The department recommends taking NRSC 2125, NRSC 2150 and NRSC 2200, the genetics and statistics requirements and the ancillary biology, and general chemistry sequences during the first 2.5 years (5 semesters) of study.
Required Courses and Credits
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Major Courses | ||
| NRSC 2125 | Introduction to Neuroscience I: Foundations | 4 |
| NRSC 2150 | Introduction to Neuroscience II: Systems | 4 |
| NRSC 2200 | Laboratory Techniques in Neuroscience | 2 |
| Select one of the following genetics courses: 1 | 3-4 | |
| Principles of Genetics (preferred) | ||
| Genetics: Molecules to Populations | ||
| Select one of the following statistics/computation courses: | 3-4 | |
| Psychological Science I: Statistics (preferred) | ||
| Introduction to Statistics and Quantitative Thinking for Biologists | ||
| Introduction to Statistics with Computer Applications | ||
| Intro to Data Science and Biostatistics | ||
| Introduction to Statistics | ||
| Statistical Analysis in Business | ||
| Introduction to Data Science with Probability and Statistics | ||
| Introduction to Social Statistics | ||
| Upper-division Neuroscience Requirements | ||
| MCDB 3135 | Molecular Biology | 3 |
| or MCDB 3145 | Cell Biology | |
| Select at least four of the following Neuroscience courses: | 12 | |
| Neurobiology of Learning and Memory | ||
| The Neurobiology of Stress | ||
| Neurobiology of Addiction | ||
| Developmental Neurobiology | ||
| Clinical Neuroscience: A Clinical and Pathological Perspective | ||
| Neural Circuits of Learning and Decision Making | ||
| Behavioral Neuroendocrinology | ||
| Neuropharmacology | ||
| Genetics of Brain and Behavior | ||
| Upper-division major electives | ||
| Select 6 credit hours of upper-division elective coursework by taking additional courses from the upper-division requirements above or from the following neuroscience and general science electives. 1 | 6 | |
| Principles of Biochemistry | ||
| Computational Genomics Lab | ||
| Animal Behavior | ||
| Computational Biology | ||
| Human Anatomy | ||
| Human Physiology | ||
| Health and Function over the Adult Lifespan | ||
| Physiological Genetics and Genomics | ||
| Sleep Physiology | ||
| Neurophysiology | ||
| Sleep, Circadian Rhythms, and Health | ||
| Advanced Data Analysis in Biomedical Research | ||
| Biological Data Science | ||
| Quantitative Optical Imaging | ||
or BCHM 4312 | Quantitative Optical Imaging | |
| Cell Signaling and Developmental Regulation | ||
| Cellular Basis of Disease | ||
| Mechanisms of Aging | ||
| Molecular Neurobiology | ||
| Senior Thesis | ||
| Affective Neuroscience | ||
| Cognitive Neuroscience/Neuropsychology | ||
| Special Topics in Neuroscience | ||
| Research Methods in Behavioral Genetics | ||
| Psychology of Perception | ||
| Social Neuroscience | ||
| Clinical Neuropsychological Disorders | ||
| Communication Neuroscience | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 37-39 | |
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Ancillary Foundation Courses | ||
| Ancillary introductory biology and laboratory requirement—select one of the two following: | 4-5 | |
| Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology (with 2 credit lab MCDB 1161, MCDB 1171, MCDB 1181/IPHY 1181, MCDB 2161, MCDB 2171) | ||
| General Biology 1 and General Biology Laboratory 1 | ||
| Ancillary general chemistry sequence requirement—select one of the following options: | 10 | |
Option 1: | ||
| General Chemistry 1 and Laboratory in General Chemistry 1 | ||
| General Chemistry 2 and Laboratory in General Chemistry 2 | ||
Option 2: | ||
Biochemistry/Chemistry double majors: the for-majors CHEM courses count. Discuss with you NRSC advisor. | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 14-15 | |
| 1 | Please check all prerequisites and corequisites before enrolling in courses. |
| 2 | Students planning graduate/medical school or work in the biotechnology industry should also take CHEM 3311 and CHEM 3331. Students should verify program requirements for any additional chemistry prerequisites. |
Graduating in Four Years
Consult the Four-Year Guarantee Requirements for information on eligibility. The concept of "adequate progress" as it is used here only refers to maintaining eligibility for the four-year guarantee; it is not a requirement for the major.
To maintain adequate progress in neuroscience, students should meet the following requirements:
- The neuroscience major ideally should be started in the first semester. Adequate progress is defined as cumulative completion of at least one fourth of the required coursework for the major during each academic year, including the following specific requirements: a) The ancillary introduction to biology requirement and the genetics requirement ideally should be completed during the first year; b) All ancillary requirements and Introduction to Neuroscience I and II ideally should be completed by the end of the second year.
- The neuroscience major requires at least 51 hours of required coursework.
- The four-year guarantee also requires completion of 30 hours of General Education courses by the end of the sophomore year.
Recommended Four-Year Plan of Study
Through the required coursework for the major, students will complete all 12 credits of the Natural Sciences area of the Gen Ed Distribution Requirement, including the lab component, and possibly the QRMS component of the Gen Ed Skills Requirement.
| Year One | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Credit Hours | |
| MCDB 1150 | Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology | 3 |
| MCDB 1161 or MCDB 1171 | From Dirt to DNA: Phage Genomics Laboratory I or Antibiotics Discovery Through Hands-on Screens I | 2 |
| MCDB 1152 | Problem Solving Co-Seminar for Introduction to Molecular and Cellular Biology | 1 |
| General Education Requirement (example: Lower-division Written Communication) | 3 | |
| General Education Requirement (example: Arts & Humanities, Social Science) | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| Genetics (MCDB 2150 or EBIO 2070) | 3-4 | |
| MCDB 2152 | Problem Solving Co-Seminars for Genetics | 1 |
| CHEM 1021 | Introductory Chemistry | 4 |
| General Education Requirement (example: Arts & Humanities, Social Science) | 3 | |
| General Education Requirement (example: Arts & Humanities, Social Science) | 3 | |
| Elective (lower-division or upper-division) | 1-3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15-18 | |
| Year Two | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CHEM 1113 & CHEM 1114 | General Chemistry 1 and Laboratory in General Chemistry 1 | 5 |
| NRSC 2125 | Introduction to Neuroscience I: Foundations | 4 |
| General Education Requirement (example: Arts & Humanities, Social Science) | 3 | |
| General Education Requirement (example: Diversity) | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| CHEM 1133 & CHEM 1134 | General Chemistry 2 and Laboratory in General Chemistry 2 | 5 |
| NRSC 2150 | Introduction to Neuroscience II: Systems | 4 |
| General Education Requirement (example: Diversity) | 3 | |
| General Education Requirement (example: Arts & Humanities, Social Science) | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Year Three | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| NRSC 2200 | Laboratory Techniques in Neuroscience | 2 |
| MATH 2510 | Introduction to Statistics | 3 |
| MCDB 3135 or MCDB 3145 | Molecular Biology or Cell Biology | 3 |
| Upper-division Elective | 3 | |
| Upper-division Elective | 3 | |
| Elective (lower-division or upper-division) | 1-3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15-17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| Upper-division NRSC Core course | 3 | |
| Upper-division NRSC Core course | 3 | |
| General Education Requirement (example: Upper-division Written Communication) | 3 | |
| Upper-division Elective | 3 | |
| Upper-division Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Year Four | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| Upper-division NRSC Core course | 3 | |
| Upper-division NRSC Core course | 3 | |
| Upper-division Elective | 3 | |
| Upper division Elective | 3 | |
| General Education Requirement (example: Arts & Humanities, Social Science) | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| Upper-division NRSC Elective | 3 | |
| Upper-division NRSC Elective | 3 | |
| Upper-division Elective | 3 | |
| Elective (lower-division or upper-division) | 3 | |
| Elective (lower-division or upper-division) | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120-125 | |
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing the program, students will:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the structural organization and functional components of the nervous system, including intracellular and intercellular signaling.
- Demonstrate understanding of the systems and circuits of the brain and nervous system that control specific functions.
- Demonstrate understanding of the important mechanistic relationship between nervous system function and health (physiological, neurological and psychological health).
- Read, evaluate and interpret primary literature in the neuroscience field.
- Design experiments, critically evaluate experimental design and analyze experimental data related to the neuroscience field.
- Effectively communicate information in the neuroscience field.