Curriculum, PhD in Neuroscience
INTRODUCTION
The functions of the nervous system in health and disease and their relationships to behavior are topics addressed in the Neuroscience Graduate Program at the University of Virginia . Each student in the program is encouraged to use the diverse resources of our neuroscience community to develop a truly individualized course of study.
Faculty areas of specialization include cellular and molecular neurobiology of vertebrates and invertebrates, nerve cell culture, neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neuropharmacology, behavioral neuroscience, neural and behavioral development and aging, and clinical neuro- science research in epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, deafness and regeneration.
The student's program should evolve through close consultation with one or more faculty advisors and be tailored to meet the individual's needs and interests. Rotations through several research laboratories are encouraged, but not required.
DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
During the first year, the students enroll in a core group of graduate neuroscience courses that are designed to provide broad knowledge of the various subdisciplines of neuroscience, exposure to the techniques used in neuroscience research, and familiarity with the research opportunities available in the program. In their second year, students can choose from a broad spectrum of more specialized, elective graduate courses.
The most important feature of the doctoral training program is the student's completion of an independent research project conducted under the supervision of a faculty advisor. This research must constitute an original and significant contribution to the field and is to be presented fully in the candidate's doctoral dissertation. The work must be of a quality suitable for publication in a recognized scientific journal. Students are encouraged to submit part or all of their research for publication as early as possible; most publish several papers while enrolled in the program.
COURSEWORK
irst Year Summer Session Courses:
NESC 997 Non-topical research/lab rotation 6 non-topical credits
First Year Fall Semester Courses:
All first year students are expected to enroll in the following classes:
BIMS 812 Cell Structure & Function 5 credits
NESC 703 Neurobiology 5 credits
NESC 801 Neuroscience Seminar 2 credits
this includes the required seminar preview
NESC 808 Student Seminar 1 credit
NESC 815 Intro to Research/lab rotation 2 credits
Total Fall Semester Credits 15 topical credits
First Year Spring Semester Courses:
NESC 706 Fundamentals of Neuroscience 5 credits
Be aware that this class starts on January 3rd, not the 17th.
http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/internet/ome/sched/home.cfm
NESC 802 Neuroscience Seminar 2 credits
this includes the required seminar preview
NESC 808 Student Seminar 1 credit
NESC 816 Intro to Research/lab rotation 2 credits
and, if offered
NESC 720 Behavioral & Cognitive Neuroscience 3 credits
(offered every other spring semester, Spring 2007)
or 2 of the following
NESC 825 Current Topics in Nesc I 2 credits
NESC 830 Current Topics in Nesc II 2 credits
NESC 845 Current Topics in Nesc III 2 credits
Total Spring Semester Topical Credits 13/14 topical credits
Total First year credits for student should be 28 or 29 credits
Second Year-
Now that a lab has been selected, begin to think about area paper topics!!!!!!!
Second Year Fall Semester Courses:
All second year students are expected to enroll in the following classes:
NESC 801 Neuroscience Seminar 2 credits
this includes the required seminar preview
NESC 808 Student Seminar 1 credit
NESC 815 Intro to Research/Lab Research 2 credits
All second year students are expected to choose between the following:
Current Topics I up to 4 credits
Current Topics II up to 4 credits
Current Topics III up to 4 credits
(See titles below)
and/or
Approved Elective or Electives
(see examples below)
Must have at least 9 credits for full-time status but recommend at least 13
Second Year Spring Semester Courses:
All second year students are expected to enroll in the following classes:
STAT 500 Intro to Appl. Statistics 4 credits
BIMS 710 Research Ethics 1 credit
NESC 802 Neuroscience Seminar 2 credits
this includes the required seminar preview
NESC 808 Student Seminar 1 credit
NESC 816 Intro to Research /Lab Research 2 credits
and, if offered
NESC 720 Behavioral & Cognitive Neuroscience 3 credits
(offered every other spring semester, Spring 2007)
or Current Topics I up to 4 credits
Current Topics II up to 4 credits
Current Topics III up to 4 credits
(See titles below)
or Approved Elective or Electives
(see examples below)
Total credits for the first two years must equal 54 hrs.
****At the end of the 2nd year, all students must have at least 54 topical credits
to qualify for advancement and to meet GSAS requirements. When choosing
classes in the second year, please be aware of this very important requirement.
Electives
Current Topics in Neuroscience-each course is 2 credit hours
Fall semester mini-courses
o NESC I -Synaptic Development & Plasticity Condron, Zhu, Erisir
o NESC II- Ion Channel Modulation Bayliss and Barrett
o NESC II-Neurobiology of Nociception Todorovic
o NESC III-Cell biology of the Neuron Winckler
Spring semester mini-courses
o NESC I- Stem Cells and Neural Regeneration Zeitlin
o NESC II- Motor Neuron Development Liu
o NESC II-Methuselah's Brain Scrable and Bennett
o NESC III- Gene knockout/down in neural cells Mandell and Hussaini
o NESC III- Channelopathies Patel and Perez-Reyes
Possible topics for mini-courses
o Development and Regulation of the Neuromuscular Junction
o Translational Research and Neuroscience
o The Blue Collar Brain: Emerging View of Neuroendocrine Circuits from
Electrophysiology
These topics and when they are offered can change every year. They will be updated on
the NGP website so that there is always a current list.
Possible Electives-The courses listed below are just a small sampling
of the courses available as potential electives. Please see the
websites listed for descriptions of other courses that might be
appropriate for your particular learning focus. Please seek approval
from Mary Kate Worden, Barry Condron or Sue Moentor before
choosing any elective.
Fall courses
BIMS 809-Cell Imaging Macara
BIMS 811-Gene Structure & Expression Engle
BIOC 503-Biochemistry Pearson
NESC 851-Directed Readings in Neuroscience
PHY 862- Neurophysiology Hackett
PHY 813-Structure and Function of Membrane Proteins Nakamoto
PHY 506-Exp. Approaches in Mol and Cell Biophysics Perozo
Spring courses
BIOL508/CELL508 Developmental Biology/Mechanisms Desimone
NESC 851- Directed Readings in Neuroscience
BIMS 832- Graduate Physiology
PSYC 521- Psychobiology
NESC- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-37.htm
BIMS- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-18.htm
PSYC- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-42.htm
PHY- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-35.htm
BIOL- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-16.htm
CELL- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-21.htm
BIOC- http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/gradrec/chapter5/chapter5-14.htm
Second Year Summer Session-Training Grant/ NRSA/VISA students only:
NESC 997 Non-topical research/lab rotation 6 non-topical credits
Third Year & Beyond
Third Year +: Fall and Spring Semesters: one of the following
NESC 997 Non-topical research- only if have NOT defended area paper
NESC 999 Non-topical research 12 non-topical credits
Summer Sessions- register only if you are one of the following:
Graduating Students**/TG/ NRSA/VISA students
NESC 997 Non-topical research-only if have NOT defended area paper
NESC 999 Non-topical research 6 non-topical credits
**Graduating students should see the program administrator for
registration instructions.
***Note: Even though you do not formally register for the Neuroscience Seminar
Series in these years, attendance is required of all students.
[From: http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/internet/neuroscience/Forms/Handbook/Academics.pdf]