Prerequisites  |   Required Courses  |   Senior Thesis  |   Electives

Co-Directors of the Certificate Program:

Michael Berry, Professor of Molecular Biology
Elizabeth Gould, Professor of Psychology

Patrice Gensel, Assistant Director


The Program in Neuroscience is designed for undergraduates with strong interests in molecular biology, psychology and related disciplines who wish to pursue an interdisciplinary study of brain function in their Junior and Senior independent work. The program encourages the serious study of molecular, cellular, developmental and systems neuroscience as it interfaces with cognitive and behavioral research. Current examples at Princeton include: plasticity and timing-dependent learning rules at synapses, coincidence detection and computation in dendrites, adaptation and pattern detection in neural circuits, cellular and circuit mechanisms of short-term memory, sensory-motor transformations in the cerebral cortex, neural stem cells in the adult brain, viral infections of the nervous system, brain imaging studies of cognitive functions such as attention and memory in human subjects, and mathematical and computational analysis of neural network function. The program offers a combination of courses and interdisciplinary research that meet the requirements of the molecular biology and psychology departments. Students in the program will be prepared to meet the entry requirements of graduate schools in neuroscience, as well as molecular biology or psychology. Courses are chosen with the help of advisors in the molecular biology, psychology and other related departments. A certificate in neuroscience is awarded to students who successfully complete the program.

Programs of Study
Students in the Program in Neuroscience develop, in consultation with their advisor, a course of study built upon their departmental concentration that consists of the curriculum listed below, plus junior and senior independent work in neuroscience and electives.

Requirements for Admission

Students are admitted to the program once they have chosen their field of concentration and consulted with the Program Directors, who will assist them in selecting an advisor. The advisor will typically supervise the student's junior independent work; the student will identify an advisor for the senior thesis late in the junior year. Normally, students entering the program will have completed the prerequisites and the Neuroscience requirements (other than electives) listed under the Program of Study.

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Curriculum Prerequisites

One year of calculus: MAT 101 or 103, and MAT 102, MAT 104 or ORF 245
MOL 214 Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology or MOL 215 Quantitative Principles in Cellular and Molecular Biology


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Neuroscience Requirements:
PSY 258 Fundamentals of Neuroscience
PSY 259 Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience
MOL 408/PSY 404 Cellular and Systems Neuroscience
Two neuroscience electives, one from Molecular Biology and one from Psychology. A list of approved courses is available from the Program Directors.

The course curriculum represents both an extension and focusing of the concentration requirements in each department.

For molecular biology majors, PSY 258 is substituted for EEB 211 (The Biology of Organisms) and MOL 408 is substituted for MOL 342 (Genetics). Two semesters each of physics, general chemistry, and organic chemistry are required, as well as MOL 345 (Biochemistry), MOL 348 (Cell and Developmental Biology), MOL 350 (Laboratory in Molecular Biology), and two other non-neuroscience departmentals. The two neuroscience electives (one from MOL and the other from PSY) are in addition to these requirements.

For psychology majors, one year of calculus is required beyond the departmental concentration course requirements, and while MOL 408/PSY 404 and the MOL elective can be counted as electives (cognates) toward the Psychology major, MOL 214 or MOL215 and the additional neuroscience elective in psychology is beyond the departmental course requirements. In addition, a course in physics is highly recommended for advanced work in the program.

Students in other departments should consult with their departmental representatives and the directors of the Certificate program to develop a course of study.

Students considering medical school or an M.D./Ph.D. program may have additional course requirements, and should speak with a health professions advisor during their first year or second year at Princeton. Pre-medical students in psychology should plan on taking one additional biology laboratory course in order to meet medical school entrance requirements.

Recognizing that Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary program whose excitement lies in new and changing areas at the interface of biology, psychology and other related disciplines, alternative programs of study may be arranged at the discretion of the Interdepartmental committee.


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Junior and Senior independent work

Independent work during the junior and senior years is supervised by faculty in the Neuroscience program (in psychology, molecular biology, or a related department with the approval of the Program Directors). For students concentrating in departments that make it impossible to do junior and senior work that fulfills both departmental and certificate program expectations, additional independent work may be required. For all students, independent research topics can be laboratory or theoretical research projects, and are approved in advance by the Program Committee, in consultation with faculty advisors. To qualify for the neuroscience certificate, a minimum B average must be attained in the program courses, and a minimum B average in the independent work is needed as well. Program courses may not be taken Pass/D/Fail.

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Neuroscience Courses Offered 2008-2009

Fall 2008
MOL 215 Quantitative Principles in Cell and Molecular Biology
MOL 408/PSY 404 Cellular and Systems Neuroscience (REQUIRED)
MOL 410/510 Introduction to Biological Dynamics
MOL 508 Advanced Topics in Neurobiology
PSY 208 The Brain: A User's Guide
PSY 258 Fundamentals of Neuroscience (REQUIRED)
PSY 334 The Neuroscience of Motivated Behavior: Eating, Drinking, Mating and Drug Addiction

Spring 2009
MOL 214 Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology
MOL 437/537 Computational Neuroscience
MOL 549 Laboratory in Neuroscience
PSY 259 Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience (REQUIRED)
PSY 330 Introduction to Connectionist Models: Bridging Between Brain and Mind
PSY 336 Diversity of Brains
PSY 415 Advanced Topics in Learning & Memory

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