Interdisciplinary Major in Neuroscience
A major in Neuroscience provides a broad background in Neuroscience, ranging from Psychology related Neuroscience to Molecular/Cellular Neuroscience. Courses are offered within the Major, and as well in the Departments of Psychology and Biology. Many students perform independent research in laboratories throughout the University as well as in the School of Medicine. Students are admitted to the major with the expectation that they will proceed to the Distinguished Majors Program.
Requirements to Apply for the Major
Applications for the NESC major are typically accepted during the student’s 4th semester at UVA. We encourage prospective College of Arts and Sciences transfer students that are interested in applying to the UVA Neuroscience program to consider transferring in their second year. This allows them the opportunity to secure a position in a neuroscience lab prior to the admission cycle and to complete or enroll in any missing pre-requisites. For third year transfers, it is very difficult to be admitted since you must have a lab position secured by fall. (See below for a list of UVA courses that fulfill the NESC prerequisites, which may be substituted by AP credits, or equivalent courses via transfer credit.) In addition, it is expected that students will have initiated neuroscience-related research within a research laboratory at the time of admission.
Requirements BA in Neuroscience
Thirty credits are required for the major in neuroscience and students must maintain at least a 2.500 GPA in the major courses and a grade of C+ or better in these courses. Students are dropped from the major if they fall below a cumulative GPA of 2.500 for all designated neuroscience courses. Students are required to take fifteen hours of core courses consisting of BIOL 3000, BIOL 3010, BIOL 3050 or PSYC 3200, and two designated capstone neuroscience courses NESC 3980 and 3985. Fifteen hours of related elective courses organized into three groups ensure students take a broad range of neuroscience topics. Students are required to take at least one from each group but no more than two from the same group will count towards the thirty credits. At least one in each group must be at the 4000 level or above (a list of designated courses follows). The courses of research and distinguished major thesis do not count toward the 30 credits for the major.
Distinguished Majors Program in Neuroscience
Students with superior academic performance and serious commitment to independent research are encouraged to apply for the Distinguished Major Program (DMP) after their first year in the Program. The Program culminates in writing a thesis of empirical research done under the mentorship of a faculty member in the NGP. The requirements for admission to the DMP are:
- Satisfaction of all College requirements as stated in this record with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.400 in the student’s College and university courses;
- A GPA of at least 3.400 in all courses taken as part of the Neuroscience major;
- A brief (1-2 page) project proposal along with a written endorsement of the project by a faculty member of the Neuroscience Graduate Program.
To gain admission to the DMP, students submit a research proposal to the NUP Director. The names of the primary (i.e., research mentor) and secondary faculty readers must also be included. Once admitted, students register for NESC 4970 in the first semester of the fourth year. In this course, students conduct their research under the supervision of an NGP faculty member. In the second semester, students register for NESC 4980 to finalize the thesis, ending with a journal-style manuscript. The research project is intended to foster independent thought and develop the student’s critical ability to formulate and conduct scientific research. The date of the student’s final submission of the DMP thesis to the committee is two weeks before the last day of classes. The two-member faculty committee (mentor and second reader) reports its evaluation of Distinction, High Distinction, or Highest Distinction of the thesis to the NUP Director by the first day of the exam period. The executive committee of the major then considers the thesis evaluation, along with the student’s academic record to submit a final level of distinction to the College Registrar. Students receive a letter grade for both NESC 4970 and NESC 4980. These courses do not count toward the 30 credit requirement for the major.
For further information on entering the Distinguished Major Program in Neuroscience, contact the current program and DMP director by email: psy-neuro@virginia.edu
Neuroscience Research Courses
Additional Information
For more information, contact the Director JC Cang, psy-neuro@virginia.edu
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