Neuroscience
The major in Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary program of 14-15 courses (maximum) designed to provide students with an appreciation of diverse approaches to understanding the function of nervous systems, as well as the ability to conduct investigations within a particular subfield of interest. Students majoring in Neuroscience complete:
- A common core program,
- A sequence of four electives determined in consultation with an adviser in Neuroscience, and
- A one- or two-semester thesis on a topic related to the four-course sequence.
The major provides good preparation for graduate work in biology, neuroscience, and a variety of other programs including medical school or other graduate health professions programs. Admission to particular advanced degree programs may require additional course work.
Learning Outcomes
The Neuroscience major of the Department of Natural Sciences aims to provide students with skills and knowledge to prepare them to effectively engage and evaluate issues and innovations in neuroscience. In particular, the program prepares students for graduate programs in Neuroscience and contributes towards the preparation for professional programs such as biotechnology and medicine.
We see the following specific student learning goals as critical to achieving the above:
- Understand the structure and function of the nervous system at various levels of organization.
- Understand a number of research techniques in neuroscience and will gain training in evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of various methods.
- Design experiments, analyze data and think critically.
- Critically evaluate published scientific literature.
Intercollegiate Coordinator: T. Borowski
Pitzer Faculty Advisers: D. Brown, T. Justus, B. Keeley, D. Moore.
Department of Natural Sciences Faculty Advisers: G. Agarwal, M. Coleman, T. Solomon-Lane
Major Requirements
The major in Neuroscience requires the completion of 14-15 courses (maximum).
Required Courses
Common Core (5)
Common Core Electives (4)
Choose from at least 3 categories from the following:
- Introductory Courses: BIOL 044L KS -Introductory Biology , PSYC 010 PZ -Introduction to Psychology , PSYC 030 CM -Introduction to Psychology , PSYC 052 SC -Introduction to Psychology , or an approved equivalent course
- General Physics: two semesters of PHYS 030L KS -General Physics Life Sciences I - PHYS 031L KS -General Physics Life Sciences II or PHYS 033L KS -Principles of Physics I - PHYS 034L KS -Principles of Physics II or an approved equivalent course; only one semester of physics may count
- Mathematics: MATH 031 PZ -Calculus II , BIOL 175 KS -Applied Biostatistics or PSYC 091 PZ -Psychological Statistics , PSYC 103 SC -Psychological Statistics , PSYC 109 CM -Stats for Psychological Science , or approved equivalent course
- Computer science: NEUR 133L KS -Intro Computational Neuroscience , PHYS 100 KS -Computational Phys/Engineering , or approved equivalent course
- Research Methods: PSYC 092 PZ -Research Methods , PSYC 104 SC -Research Design in Psychology , PSYC 104L SC -Research Design in Psyc Lab , PSYC 110 CM -Research Methods , or approved equivalent course
Elective Specialization Courses (4-5)
A coherent grouping of 4-5 elective courses to be determined in consultation with an adviser in Neuroscience and approved by the Coordinator of the Intercollegiate Neuroscience Program. Students studying abroad are allowed to use a maximum of two courses towards their course elective specialization. Areas in which a student may elect to specialize include, but are not limited to,
- Behavioral Neuroscience,
- Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, or Neuropharmacology
- Cognitive Neuroscience,
- Computational Neuroscience,
- Philosophy of Neuroscience,
Senior Thesis (1-2)
- A one- or two-semester Senior Thesis on a topic related to the student’s course specialization (one-semester thesis needs 5 specialization courses; two-semester thesis needs 4 speciali
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