neuroscience phd programs in california

Interdisciplinary Training in the Neurosciences

The USC Neuroscience Graduate Program (NGP) is the only university-wide PhD program at USC. NGP students and faculty come from a variety of academic backgrounds to study questions spanning the spectrum of modern neuroscience research. We provide a highly supportive, research-intensive training experience designed to prepare students for a variety of successful careers. Learn more »

Not a graduate student? Learn about the USC Neuroscience Undergraduate Program .

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Berkeley Neuroscience

Prospective Students

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The Neuroscience PhD Program at UC Berkeley is run jointly by the Department of Neuroscience and the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute (HWNI) . The program offers intensive training in neuroscience research through a combination of coursework, research training, mentoring, and professional development. We have 65 program faculty from the Neuroscience Department and HWNI faculty members in other allied departments on campus to provide broad expertise from molecular and cellular neuroscience to systems and computational neuroscience, to human cognitive neuroscience.

A unique feature of the neuroscience training at Berkeley is the highly multidisciplinary research environment. For instance, neuroscientists work side-by-side in the lab with engineers and roboticists to study motor control, with bioengineers to grow stem cells for regenerative medicine and tissue engineering, and with chemists to develop new reagents for optical monitoring and control of neural activity. Neuroscience PhD Program students are trained at these intersections between fields and help drive scientific and technological advances.

The Neuroscience PhD Program trains a select group of students (about 10-12 entering students per year) in an intellectually stimulating and supportive environment. Since its official launch in 2000, the program has trained more than 150 students. Our applicants have outstanding undergraduate records in both research and scholarship from diverse academic disciplines, including biology, chemistry, psychology, physics, engineering, and computer science. We carefully select students with the expectation that, given strong graduate training, they will develop into tomorrow’s leaders in the field of neuroscience. We welcome you to apply to our program.

Please see the Neuroscience Department page:  Diversity, Equity & Inclusion .

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Neuroscience PhD Program

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UCLA Graduate Programs

Graduate Program: Neuroscience

UCLA's Graduate Program in Neuroscience offers the following degree(s):

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

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With questions not answered here or on the program’s site (above), please contact the program directly.

Neuroscience Graduate Program at UCLA 1506 Gonda Center Box 951761 Los Angeles, CA 90095-1761

Visit the Neuroscience’s faculty roster

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

Visit the registrar's site for the Neuroscience’s course descriptions

(310) 206-4407

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Neurosciences Graduate Program

Located in America's finest city, our Ph.D program in Neurosciences boasts a long history of excellence. Benefit from our unique postion in San Diego, a hub for scientific research and discovery

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Fall 2025 Application will open on September 4th, 2024. Application deadline is November 25, 2024

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Application deadline: December 1

Breadth of interests and training are major features of the graduate program in neuroscience. Wide and varied skills in many research areas characterize the faculty of the program. Close contact between faculty and students is considered of major importance in this highly interdisciplinary field.

Training is given in several areas of specialization: behavioral and systems neuroscience, cellular and molecular neurobiology, cognitive neuroscience, computational neuroscience, neuroengineering and neuroscience of aging and development.

Applicants should normally have defined an interest in one or two specializations. A final choice of the specialization will be made during the first year.

Admission Requirements

A baccalaureate degree in a field relevant to the student’s graduate goals is required.

Appropriate fields would include neuroscience, biology, chemistry, computer science, linguistics, psychology and many areas of engineering. Undergraduate study should provide evidence of proficiency in mathematics, including statistics. Students planning to enter the specialization in computational and mathematical neuroscience should have taken course work in calculus and, where possible, linear algebra and computer programming. Applicants who are accepted with minor deficiencies are expected to correct these during the first year.

Degree Requirements

These degrees are awarded under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School. Refer to the Requirements for Graduation    section and The Graduate School    section of this catalogue for general regulations. All courses applied toward the degrees must be courses accepted by the Graduate School.

Advisory Committee

The student will be advised during the first year by the Graduate Advisement Committee. As soon as the student has selected a specialization, an Advisory Committee of appropriate faculty will be appointed. This committee will be chaired by the thesis adviser, when chosen. The purpose of the Advisory Committee is to help the student in the selection of courses and research; to monitor the student’s progress; to insure preparation for the qualifying examination; and to administer that examination.

Course Requirements

A minimum of 60 units is required, consisting of formal courses, seminars and research credits. At least 24 of the 60 units are to be formal graduate course work (lecture or seminar courses). During the first year the student is expected to complete the core courses in neuroscience ( NSCI 524    and NSCI 525   ), one key course, INTD 500    Responsible Conduct of Research, and two semesters of NSCI 539   . Other courses in the area of specialization may also be taken in the first year and will be taken in subsequent years.

Core Courses: NSCI 524    and NSCI 525    Advanced Overview of Neuroscience (8 units), will be taken by all students in the fall and spring of their first year to provide an integrated multilevel view of neuroscience. To take the core course, students should have mastered the material currently taught in BISC 421   . (Students will be expected to review a detailed syllabus and reading list for BISC 421    to identify their level of knowledge prior to their arrival at USC and will receive advice at Orientation on whether to take BISC 421    or read recommended material to remedy their deficiencies.)

Key Courses: All students will be required to complement their thesis-directed studies with a “breadth with depth” requirement by taking two key courses, one each from two different tracks listed below. Each key course will be for 3 or 4 units. (At least one of these courses will serve to advance thesis-related study as well.)

• Cellular, Molecular and Developmental Neuroscience Track
• Cognitive Neuroscience Track
• Computational Neuroscience and Neuroengineering Track
• Systems and Behavioral Neuroscience Track

All students are required to take INTD 500    Responsible Conduct of Research (1 unit), as well as a 4-unit approved statistics course ( PM 510   , PSYC 501    or equivalent).

Students may request permission to have non-NSCI advanced courses satisfy the track requirements.

It is required that all neuroscience PhD students demonstrate competence in statistics in fulfillment of their PhD requirements.

Qualifying Examination

The qualifying examination concentrates on the student’s ability to demonstrate a grasp of the major area of interest chosen and its relation to other areas of training offered in the program. The examination is partly written and partly oral and is designed to test the student’s ability to meet the demands of the profession.

Dissertation

An acceptable dissertation based on completion of an original investigation is required. The candidate must defend an approved draft of the dissertation in an oral examination.

Neuroscience

Graduate Studies

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Master of Science

The Neuroscience Graduate Program is a highly interactive program that provides outstanding training in the neurosciences by a dedicated and internationally recognized faculty. Areas of research include the cellular and molecular structure of neurons, mechanisms of synaptic plasticity, development of the nervous system, organization of brain systems for motor control and processing of visual and auditory information, structure and function of memory and attention systems, and the pathobiology of neurological disorders. In order to understand the biology of learning, memory, language, behavior, disease, and sensory and motor systems, the faculty employs a wide array of techniques. These techniques include molecular genetics, biochemistry, in vivo and in vitro electrophysiological techniques, computational modeling, psychophysics, behavioral assessment, and functional brain imaging. The laboratories participating in the program are richly equipped for the full spectrum of modern neuroscience research. Students have access to cutting-edge equipment such as a multi-photon imaging system, several confocal microscopes, a gene chip array system, shared molecular equipment, a mass spectrometer, electron microscopes, and fMRI and PET scanners.

Graduate Program Requirements

Contact information.

Neuroscience

Preparing for the Future

The Graduate Program

Graduate training leading to the ph.d in neuroscience at the university of california, riverside.

The Graduate Neuroscience Program at UCR trains students to use a multidisciplinary approach to understand brain and behavior. Opportunities for training encompass multiple levels of analyses ranging from molecular and cellular to circuits and networks to cognition and behavior. The goal of our Program is to prepare students for careers in research, teaching, industry and scientific administration. Students are expected to learn the fundamentals of Neuroscience, starting with a required core sequence, become knowledgeable concerning a range of research methods and demonstrate capability in original research. The specific research training received by a graduate student is the responsibility of the major professor/mentor under whose guidance and in whose laboratory the student carries out the research projects leading to the degree. Students will benefit from an interdisciplinary training approach, tailored by the major advisor, but enriched by the readily available expertise and laboratory facilities of faculty with backgrounds ranging from chemistry to psychology. In addition to this training, we make students explore various careers open to neuroscientists through outside speakers and professional development forums.         

The Interdepartmental Ph.D. Program in Neuroscience at UCR is aimed at providing high quality graduate training for students who come from a variety of undergraduate backgrounds but share a commitment and an intense interest in nervous system research. We currently have 45 faculty members with expertise in various aspects of Neuroscience and whose principal appointments are in the Departments of Bioengineering, Biology, Molecular, Cellular and Systems Biology, Chemistry, Entomology, Psychology, and the Division of Biomedical Sciences

A major part of training in Neuroscience is in supervised laboratory research, the student working with one or more of the Neuroscience faculty. Applicants are encouraged to make contact with faculty members whose work may correspond closely to their own individual interests. Contact information for each faculty member are given in the following pages. Applicants may also contact:

Antonio Knox, Graduate Student Services Advisor

Ph.D. Program in Neuroscience 1140 Batchelor Hall University of California Riverside, CA 92521 (951) 827-6746  | TOLL FREE: (800) 735-0717 Email:  [email protected]

• First Year Students:  Declare a Rotation
• 2017-18 Neuroscience Graduate Student Handbook
• 2016-17 Neuroscience Graduate Student Handbook (pdf format)
• UCR International Services Center

Students are normally supported for five years of graduate training. Eligibility for admission and financial support is determined on the basis of a number of factors including appropriate courses, grade point average, strong letters of recommendation and personal statements. Prior research experience at the undergraduate level is deemed highly desirable.

Doctoral Degree in Neuroscience

Core requirements include:

• NRSC/PSYC 200A, 200B, 200C (Fundamentals of Neuroscience)
• One Research Methods course selected from NRSC 201 (Graduate Neuro Lab), CBNS/PSYC 120L (Undergraduate Neuro Lab), CHEM 125, CHEM 221A, CHEM 221B, CHEM 221C, CHEM 221D, PSYC 211, PHYS 139L
• Two courses or one course sequence selected from the following: CBNS 127, PSYC 203A, PSYC 203B, PSYC 203C, BCH 110A-BCH 110B-BCH 110C, BIOL/CMDB 200, BIOL/CMDB 201, BCH 241/CHEM 241, BIOL 203, BMSC 210A, BMSC 210B, BMSC 220, BMSC 230, ENTM 206 and ENTM 206L, CBNS 120.  Which of these course options are most appropriate to the student's career goals will be determined by the student in consultation with his/her guidance committee.
• During each quarter in academic residence every student will enroll and participate in the Colloquium in Neuroscience (NRSC 287), and, until passing the oral qualifying examination, every student will take at least two seminars, Special Topics in Neuroscience (NRSC 289, 2 units), during each year of academic residence.  One seminar per year will be required after the qualifying examination is passed.
• After completing the course requirements and no later than the ninth quarter in residence, the student will be given a two-part qualifying examination, one written and one oral.
• Regardless of whether financial support comes from Fellowships or Research Assistantships, etc., each student will be required to be a Teaching Assistant for at least two quarters in Neuroscience or related-area courses, such as those taught by their mentors.
• Within three months of advancement to candidacy, the student will be required to submit a written dissertation proposal to the Dissertation Committee for comments and approval. Before the dissertation is given final approval, the student must present a public lecture on the dissertation research to faculty and students in the program. Following the public lecture, the student will meet with the Dissertation Committee for an oral defense in accordance with the regulations of the Graduate Division.

The normative time to the Ph.D. degree is 16 quarters.

Neuroscience PhD

The Neuroscience PhD Program at UC Berkeley is a unique, diverse PhD training program that offers intensive, integrated training in multiple areas of neuroscience research.

The program includes approximately 65 training faculty from different campus departments, with expertise ranging from molecular and cellular neuroscience to systems and computational neuroscience to human cognitive neuroscience.

We provide a highly interdisciplinary, intellectually dynamic training environment of coursework, research training, professional development, and mentoring, within a strong research program that produces fundamental advances in knowledge and novel techniques.

Contact Info

[email protected]

Barker Hall, Berkeley CA 94720

Berkeley, CA 94720

At a Glance

Department(s)

Neuroscience Graduate Program

Admit Term(s)

Application Deadline

December 2, 2024

Degree Type(s)

Doctoral / PhD

Degree Awarded

GRE Requirements