This spring the University will join a growing number of institutions that offer a neuroscience major to undergraduate students. This comes 30 years after the University began offering its graduate program in neuroscience.
Proposed at the University over a decade ago, the neuroscience major is the brainchild of Prof. David Hill, who formerly directed neuroscience graduate programs and now heads the undergraduate program.
This has been a "long time in the making," said Hill, who began creating the major two years prior to its approval last fall.
Before the major's inception, many interested students completed degrees in biology, psychology and cognitive science, said Peter Brunjes, associate dean for graduate programs and research.
"A benefit of having this major available for undergraduates is access to labs of all members of the neuroscience community," said Doug Bayliss, director of the neuroscience graduate program. "Many introductory graduate courses will be offered as 500-level undergraduate courses."
While this is not a research major, laboratory experience will be encouraged, Hill said.
"Interested students will continue to find research opportunities on their own outside the neuroscience major," he added. "Our program will just offer a more structured approach."
Although the undergraduate neuroscience major is in its infancy, there has historically been a lot of undergraduate interest, Brunjes said.
"There have been undergraduates working in neuroscience for over 20 years," he said. "Right now there are a lot of cognitive science majors that are interested in brain science. This major is specialized for those who are interested in the biology aspect."
The main difference between a cognitive science major and one in neuroscience is that the new major will be "more biology-based and less focused on computer modeling," Hill said.
There will still be an important place for neuroscience study within the cognitive science major, he added.
Second-year Engineering student and computer science major Margaret Perschy said she welcomes the addition.
"If that were offered before, I would have seriously considered taking the major," she said. "In cognitive science, each of the five departments now has a major. It's befitting."
Second-year College student Matt Gruenburg said the new major is long overdue.
"It should have been done five years ago," Gruenburg said. "A lot of people who graduate here with computer science or cognitive science majors would look better with neuroscience majors to graduate schools."
Hill said that the new program would not offer any specific advantages over other related majors to students who are applying for graduate programs.
An undergraduate degree in neuroscience is "not required for admission into neuroscience graduate programs, but would help," Bayliss said.
This spring, 25 qualified students will be selected to declare the new major by a five-member panel, Hill said. Applications are due March 10, and interested students are encouraged to visit the neuroscience undergraduate Web page.
"The more people we have involved in neuroscience and neuroscience research, the better," Bayliss said.
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