UMA Graduate Bulletin 2019-2020 Program Descriptions, Faculty and Courses Neuroscience and Behavior Program Overview Doctor of Philosophy Degree Program
Doctor of Philosophy Degree ProgramCurrent requirements are available on the Program's website, but in general, because of diversity in students’ backgrounds, interests, and career goals, it is the intent of the program to provide a maximum of flexibility in individual training programs. NSB students are expected to fulfill the following requirements for the Ph.D.
Proseminar and Research Ethics CoursesAll first-year NSB students are required to take, during the fall semester, the Neuroscience and Behavior Proseminar introducing the program and its faculty and covering topics such as grant writing and the art of oral presentations. A course in the Responsible Conduct of Research in the Life Sciences is offered during the spring semester and covers major topics in the scientific ethics of life science research. Both are 1-credit, pass-fail courses. Core CoursesAll students entering the program are required to take the two core NSB courses: Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Neurobiology and Behavioral & Cognitive Neuroscience. One is not a prerequisite of the other, but both must be completed, with a grade of B or better, by the end of the second year. Their purpose is to provide a common base of knowledge for students from diverse undergraduate backgrounds. ElectivesGiven the need for students to orient their studies toward their proposed research areas early in their graduate program, a number of existing courses are designated as NSB electives. Students must satisfactorily complete three of these courses (with at least two being at the 600 level or above) within the first two years of study, choosing from the following list.
In addition, any course (or three-credit special topics seminar) at the 600 level or above taught by a member of the NSB core faculty may be used to satisfy the elective requirement. Students may substitute three journal clubs for one 500-level NSB elective. All three journal clubs must be led and graded by a faculty member. Students wishing to substitute journal clubs for an elective should submit to the graduate operations committee a memorandum requesting the substitution and including the reading lists or syllabi of the journal clubs. Quantitative RequirementEvery student must take at least one course to satisfy this requirement, which is determined by his or her guidance committee. In most cases, this involves successfully completing one or more statistics courses, such as: PSYCH 640 and 641 Statistical Inference in Psychology I, II; PUBHLTH 640 Intermediate Biostatistics; STATISTC 501 Methods of Applied Statistics; or STATISTC 506 Design of Experiments or ECO 697S ST Design and Analysis of Ecological Data or ECO 697AB Applied Biostatistics for Natural Resources or ECO 697SA Special Topics Advanced Statistical Ecology or ECO 797S ST Applied Multivariate Statistics for Ecological Data. However, the Guidance Committee may deem it necessary for the student to meet the quantitative requirement by taking other appropriate quantitative courses in areas such as bioinformatics or modeling. Additional CourseworkWith strong recommendations from the Guidance Committee, students select courses in other areas, including genetics, embryology, cybernetics, histology, cell biology, and cell regulation, according to their chosen field of research, interest, and specialization. Students are also expected to take several advanced seminars and to regularly attend colloquia sponsored by the NSB program. Research ProjectsEarly in their training, all NSB students are expected to gain experience in the design, conduct, and reporting of empirical research. Therefore, all students are expected to engage in major research projects upon entering the Program and to present the results of their work to the entire Program. Comprehensive ExamBefore the start of the third year in the program, all students must pass a preliminary doctoral comprehensive examination, which consists of a written examination and submission of a NRSA-type fellowship application. This requirement serves both an educational and evaluative role: to enable students to develop and demonstrate a level of scholarship and knowledge in their chosen area of study that is appropriate for the doctoral-level neuroscientist, and to demonstrate students' critical, integrative, and theoretical abilities within the broader scope of Neuroscience and Behavior. The final requirement of the Ph.D. program in Neuroscience and Behavior is the completion and defense of a doctoral dissertation. |