How do our brains work? How do millions of individual neurons work together to give rise to behavior at the level of a whole organism? Training researchers to answer these fundamental, unanswered questions is the goal of the Ph.D. program in the Princeton Neuroscience Institute. Students in this program learn to use the latest techniques and approaches in neuroscience and are trained in how to think and how to develop new techniques and approaches. Creativity and originality are essential to cracking the puzzle of the brain.
Neuroscience Ph.D. students take lecture and laboratory courses; learn to read, understand, and present current scientific literature; develop and carry out substantial original research; and present their research at meetings and conferences.
Coursework in the Princeton Neuroscience Ph.D. program is based on the idea that hands-on experience is an essential part of gaining real understanding. During the first year, all students participate in a unique year-long Core Course that surveys current neuroscience. The subjects covered in lectures are accompanied by direct experience in the lab. Students learn through first-hand experience how to run their own fMRI experiments; to design and run their own computer simulations of neural networks; to image live neural activity; and to patch-clamp single cells, to name a few examples. This course offers students a unique opportunity to learn the practical knowledge that is essential for successfully developing new experiments and techniques. Previous experimental experience is not required.
Incoming students are encouraged to rotate through up to three different labs to choose the lab that best matches their interests. During this process, students may sometimes discover an area of research completely new and fascinating to them. Following their rotations, and by mutual agreement with their prospective faculty adviser, students choose a lab in which they will carry out their Ph.D. research.