The neuroscience curriculum provides a necessary breadth of knowledge across major areas of neuroscience and accommodates students with diverse academic backgrounds.
Core Courses
In their first year, students take the following core courses to establish a strong foundation in neuroscience:
All students also select an area of specialization, based on their research interests: Molecular, Cellular, and Translational(MCT) or Systems, Cognitive, and Computational (SCC). This provides students with an opportunity to delve more deeply into the subfields of neuroscience in which they are most interested, choosing one additional core course:
Students also learn about quantitative methods, which are critical for modern neuroscience research, choosing one of the following:
In their first year, students take the following core courses to establish a strong foundation in neuroscience:
- Cellular Neuroscience and Laboratory in Neural Science I. Through lectures, conferences, and labs, this course covers basic principles of cellular neuroscience, from membrane biophysics to synaptic transmission and plasticity. The course interweaves electrophysiological, cellular, and molecular mechanisms to provide a thorough understanding of this essential material.
- Systems Neuroscience and Laboratory in Neural Science II. This course covers neurophysiological, behavioral and psychophysical functions of the nervous system. Lectures, conferences, and labs examine the network and computational organization of sensory and motor systems in the brain, establishing a comprehensive understanding of information processing.
- Neuroanatomy. This hands-on course covers the detailed anatomy of the human peripheral and central nervous systems within a functional context, including discussions of clinical cases that allow students to fully integrate and apply their knowledge.
All students also select an area of specialization, based on their research interests: Molecular, Cellular, and Translational(MCT) or Systems, Cognitive, and Computational (SCC). This provides students with an opportunity to delve more deeply into the subfields of neuroscience in which they are most interested, choosing one additional core course:
- Molecular Neurobiology. Through lectures and conferences, this course covers key aspects of the cellular biology of neurons and glia, including transcription, translation, intracellular signaling, cytoskeleton and development.
- Behavioral & Cognitive Neuroscience. This course is designed to familiarize students with essential experiments and theory in cognitive and behavioral neuroscience, preparing them to think critically about research.
Students also learn about quantitative methods, which are critical for modern neuroscience research, choosing one of the following:
- Math Tools. This course delves into rigorous data analysis and modeling based on MATLAB programming.
- Biostatistics. Several courses are available that provide students with an understanding of statistical analysis.
Advanced Electives
Additional courses fill in areas of expertise and expand on topics directly relevant to the students’ thesis work, with typically 3-4 electives offered each semester. Examples include:
Additional courses fill in areas of expertise and expand on topics directly relevant to the students’ thesis work, with typically 3-4 electives offered each semester. Examples include:
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Additional Classes
- Scientific Integrity and the Responsible Conduct of Research. The NIH mandates that biomedical graduate students be trained in the responsible conduct of research, and all program 1st year graduate students take a short-course on this topic.
- Grant Writing for Scientists. The program offers a short-course in the spring on grant writing, organized in large part as a workshop. Through it, students learn about all aspects of grant writing, including selecting appropriate funding mechanisms, writing individual grant sections, and understanding administrative policies.
- Scientific Methods: Survival Techniques for Young Investigators in Biomedical Research. This one-day seminar for first year students deals with practical issues, such as: how to get (any) laboratory techniques to work reproducibly and predictably; how to read a paper actively, rather than passively; how to pick a research project; how to write a scientific paper; and how to be an effective seminar speaker.
Policy on Academic Integrity
All students must adhere to NYU’s principles of academic integrity and the Honor Code.
Academic integrity means that all of the work that you submit is original.
Violations of academic integrity include:
All students must adhere to NYU’s principles of academic integrity and the Honor Code.
Academic integrity means that all of the work that you submit is original.
Violations of academic integrity include:
- Cheating on exams, quizzes, or other graded assignments
- Plagiarism: appropriating the ideas, words & images of others
- Fabrication or falsification of data