for Students matriculating Summer, 2018:
10 Neuroscience courses / 7 Co-requisites
The B.S. Major in Neuroscience comprises 5 foundational classes plus 5 elective courses. You should plan to complete all 5 foundational classes before your senior year, and before any in-depth seminar or lecture course at the 400-level or above. While this counsel is not enforced, it is strongly recommended and will certainly facilitate getting the most learning and practical experience out of your academic and scholarly activities in the Neuroscience major.
BME Majors pursuing a Second Major (BS2) in Neuroscience should follow the guidelines below. Specific requirements will be noted where applicable.
Visit Open Office Hours (Mondays/Thursdays 10:30-11:30am, Wednesday/Fridays 2-3pm) in the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences for help with academic planning.
Five Foundational Courses
One Gateway
ALL prospective majors or minors in Neuroscience should take the “gateway” course as their first Neuroscience class:
- NEUROSCI 101/PSY 106 Biological Basis of Behavior
- NEUROSCI 102/PSY 107 Biological Bases of Behavior (TEAM based)
Two Core Courses
There are two core courses that reflect various levels of inquiry that should be experienced by all Majors in Neuroscience: the molecular and cellular level; the level of neural circuits within which cells are organized and interconnected; and the level of behavior.
- NEUROSCI 212 Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience
- NEUROSCI 223 Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology
One Statistics
All neuroscience majors should demonstrate proficiency in statistical sciences by completing one Statistics course at the 100-200 level.
Note: BME Majors pursuing a Second Major (BS2) in Neuroscience should take the BME-recommended Statistics course.
One Methods or Laboratory course (above NEUROSCI 300)
Completion of methods or laboratory courses will equip you with knowledge and skills that should facilitate productivity and success in Research Independent Study projects, so we recommend that you take one of these courses early in your program of study.
Note: BS2 Majors should take BME 301L Bioelectricity immediately upon completion of NEUROSCI 101/102 (or concurrently); this course is considered foundational for a BME major with a BS2 in Neuroscience.
Five Elective Courses
Electives
Neuroscience Majors are required to explore the breadth and depth of the field by fulfilling six elective requirements in Neuroscience. Seminar, lecture, methods/laboratory elective offerings are drawn from a dynamic list of approximately 50 courses that are offered by five Departments in Trinity College, as well as Departments in the School of Medicine and the Pratt School of Engineering (see Complete Course Listing)
- One in-depth (350S or higher) seminar elective
- Four other electives drawn from the following, for example:
- Lecture electives
- Research Independent study 493-496 (no more than two; recommend taking Methods/Laboratory first). Prior to registration in NEUROSCI 493, you must complete two NEUROSCI courses
- Independent Scholarship 391-392
- intersection courses (may only count one)
Note: no more than two of the ten courses required for the Major in Neuroscience (not including co-requisites) may be used to satisfy the requirements of another major or other academic program. For BS2 Majors with a first major in BME, this rule only applies to the electives: of the 5 Neuroscience electives, no more than 2 electives may be cross-listed between NEUROSCI and BME.
Please download the Majors/Minors Requirements Planning Worksheet in our Forms Section.