Wanting to apply for a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience

[Hannah87]

I'm hoping to apply to PhD programs in Cognitive Neuroscience/Cognitive Science in the fall, hopefully so that I could start by the fall of 2014.  I'm trying to supplement my resume before that time and am interested in advice regarding what classes to take.  I got my Bachelor's degrees in Social Work and Spanish and have a Master's degree from the University of Chicago in Latin American Studies, writing my master's thesis on international adoption policy implications for child psychological and neurological development.  I spent a year in Boston working as an in-home family therapist and I currently work for Boston Medical Center doing mental health research in their Pediatrics Department.  I have weekend internships doing neuroimaging in the Cognitive Neuroscience lab at Boston Children's Hospital and analyzing infant fMRI data for Massachusetts General Hospital.  I just finished an evening course at Harvard Extension in Neurobiology and am hoping to take between 2-4 more courses before applying in the fall.  Right now I'm looking mostly at biology and computer science courses (Cell Biology, Genetics, Systems Physiology, CS courses in C++ and Java), but I'm worried about picking the wrong things or classes that aren't really applicable.  Any advice on subjects to focus on or any prerequisite courses for admissions to this kind of program would be really helpful.  

[lucere]

I'm in grad school for cog neuro, and this is my take, which may or may not be applicable since you didn't say much of what you actually want to research.

 

It sounds like you're building a case more for biological neuroscience than cognitive neuroscience. While biology is good to have a basic grasp of, for actual research purposes, I think you could be better served by taking cognitive psychology, psychophysiology (ie, a course on cognitive neuroscience methods like EEG/fMRI), some kind of psychology lab (which is actually an explicit requirement on some cog neuro apps), basic neuroanatomy (or, better, "systems neuroscience"). I know "psychology" can feel like a fluffy word for someone applying to cognitive neuroscience, but it's generally the case that cog neuro doesn't require much cell bio unless you're studying animal models (in which case, you'd be better off in an animal lab than the fMRI labs you're working in!).

 

As for computer science courses, I would strongly recommend MATLAB over the more traditional courses like C++. It has a much kinder learning curve, can accomplish the same tasks (occassionally in roundabout ways), and it is used by everyone I know - grad school engineers, psychologists, and neuroscientists alike. Most cog neuro software uses it or is compatible with it.

 

Let me know if you have any Qs!