Overview
The Collaborative Specialization in Neuroscience offers the opportunity for Master’s and PhD students to combine their departmental degree program with multidisciplinary exposure to the field of neuroscience. This unique training experience provides students with the best possible foundation for academic careers in neuroscience and related areas.
Doctoral and Master’s (thesis or course work and major research paper) students wishing to undertake graduate studies with emphasis on neuroscience will be admitted by a participating department and will register in both the participating department and in the collaborative specialization.
Collaborative Specialization in Neuroscience Brochure PDF
Participating Departments
- Animal Biosciences
- Biomedical Sciences
- Clinical Studies
- Human Health and Nutritional Sciences
- Integrative Biology
- Molecular and Cellular Biology
- Pathobiology
- Philosophy
- Population Medicine
- Psychology
Admissions
Prospective students can apply at the time of their application to the University of Guelph. The application process has two stages: first, application to the primary program of interest, identifying interest in the Collaborative specialization as a secondary focus. If the student is admitted to the primary program, the second stage is then admission to the Collaborative Specialization. Students may add the Collaborative Specialization at any time during their degree (except for the last semester before graduation), as long as they complete the program requirements via a “Study Option or Degree Program Transfer” form with the Graduate Program Assistant in their home department.
As a practical matter, any Faculty member who is approved by the Board of Graduate Studies for graduate faculty status and is a member of a participating unit within the Collaborative Specialization is allowed to advise a participating student. However, one member on the qualifying exam committee must be a core member of the Collaborative Specialization in Neuroscience outside the student’s home department or a faculty member from another university approved by graduate studies. Furthermore, one member of the student’s advisory committee must be a core member of the Collaborative Specialization outside the student’s home department or a faculty member from another university approved by graduate studies.
Degree Requirements | Master’s Program (MSc or MBS)
In addition to coursework in their respective departments, students in the Master’s program must complete NEUR*6000 Principles of Neuroscience (0.5 credits), as well as registering for NEUR*6100 Seminar in Neuroscience (0.0 credits) every Fall and Winter semester that they are in the program. Importantly, students registered in the Collaborative Neuroscience Specialization can use NEUR*6000 as an elective to satisfy their program requirements. Please check with your departmental graduate coordinator for clarification.
In NEUR*6100, students and faculty will meet once a month to hear talks from experts in the field and discuss the presented research. Please note that NEUR*6100 is a two-semester commitment, and students must register for the course twice each year: once in the Fall and once in the Winter. Students who do not register for both terms will have incomplete coursework on their transcript, and will be unable to complete the Master’s program until it is resolved.
Degree Requirements | PhD Program
If a student enters the Collaborative PhD Specialization in Neuroscience at the doctoral level, in addition to coursework in their respective departments, they must complete NEUR*6000 Principles of Neuroscience or show evidence of course equivalence in prior training. Students registered in the Collaborative Neuroscience Specialization can use NEUR*6000 as an elective to satisfy their program requirements. Please check with your departmental graduate coordinator for clarification.
Students must be engaged in neuroscience dissertation research. Doctoral students must also enroll in NEUR*6100 Seminar in Neuroscience (0.0 credit) every Fall and Winter semester that they are in the program. Failing to register for both the Fall and Winter semesters every year could delay graduation. The seminar will meet monthly. Students must take their qualifying exams within five semesters of entering the program, as required by University graduate policies.