nyu neuroscience undergraduate research

Neural Science (BS)

Program description, honors program.

Neural science spans multiple disciplines for studying the function of the brain. Experimental approaches in neural science vary from analyses of molecular and cellular mechanisms in nerve cells and groups of nerve cells to behavioral and psychological studies of whole organisms. Theoretical tools include mathematical and computational modeling approaches that have proved useful in other areas of science. Experimental questions include issues related to biophysical and neurochemical mechanisms within single nerve cells, functional neural circuits consisting of small numbers of neurons, the behavior of large systems of neurons, and the relationship between the activity of elements of the nervous system and the behavior of organisms. The Center for Neural Science confers the B.S. degree in neural science (there is no B.A degree for this major, nor is there a minor).

To graduate with honors in neural science, students must achieve a GPA of 3.65 in both the major and overall.

In the fall semester of their senior year, students seeking honors must complete NEURL-UA 301 Honors Seminar . In the spring of their senior year, they must present a paper at the College’s annual Undergraduate Research Conference and the department’s Undergraduate Research Conference and submit an honors thesis that is accepted by the faculty sponsor and the director of undergraduate studies.

Admittance to the laboratory courses associated with NEURL-UA 210 Cellular & Molecular Neurobiology and NEURL-UA 220 Behavioral & Integrative Neuroscience is assured and required only for students in the honors track.

New York University's Office of Undergraduate Admissions supports the application process for all undergraduate programs at NYU.  For additional information about undergraduate admissions, including application requirements, see How to Apply . 

Program Requirements

The foreign language requirement is satisfied upon successful completion through the Intermediate level of a language. This may be accomplished in fewer than 16 credits, but those credits must then be completed as elective credit.

May include NEURL-UA 302 Special Topics in Neural Science , NEURL-UA 305 Development and Dysfunction of the Nervous System

Please note that PHYS-UA 11 General Physics I , or credit for AP Physics C (Mechanics), is a prerequisite for General Physics II. Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis by the Department of Physics. Students are not automatically permitted to take PHYS-UA 12 General Physics II before/without PHYS-UA 11 General Physics I .

Such as PSYCH-UA 10 Statistics for The Behavioral Sciences

Prehealth students must take, in addition to the above, BIOL-UA 123 , PHYS-UA 11 General Physics I , CHEM-UA 225 Organic Chemistry I & Laboratory , CHEM-UA 226 Organic Chemistry II & Laboratory , and CHEM-UA 881 Biochemistry I . These courses are not required for the major in neural science.

AP or other advanced standing credit is only accepted for the calculus and statistics requirements. This is on a case-by-case basis and must be approved by a neural science adviser.

A grade of B- or higher in NEURL-UA 100 Intro to Neural Science is the prerequisite to declaring the major (a grade of C or better is required for all other courses in the major). Exceptions may be made for students taking NEURL-UA 100 Intro to Neural Science in the spring of sophomore year; however, they must earn a B- or better in NEURL-UA 100 Intro to Neural Science to remain declared.

Note: NEURL-UA 100 Intro to Neural Science is offered only in the spring term. Students may take it as early as their first year if they are well-prepared and their schedules permit it, but taking it in the spring of their sophomore year does not endanger their ability to complete this major and graduate in two more years.

Students should meet with a neural science adviser as early in their NYU career as possible (freshman year is recommended).

Sample Plan of Study

Note: Students may replace 4-credit degree electives with 2-credit electives as necessary to graduate with the minimum 128 credits.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of program requirements, students are expected to have acquired:

• Foundational knowledge in the field of Neural Science, including molecular, cellular, developmental, systems, cognitive, behavioral, and computational approaches to understanding the brain.
• The ability to conduct and utilize research.
• Skills in critical reading, quantitative analysis, clear writing, and verbal presentation.

NYU Policies

College of arts and science policies.

University-wide policies can be found on the New York University Policy pages .

A full list of relevant academic policies can be found on the CAS Academic Policies page . 

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NYU Shanghai Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Program (SURP) in Neuroscience   

Application for 2024 is Closed.

The NYU Shanghai S ummer U ndergraduate R esearch Experience P rogram ( SURP ) in Neuroscience is designed to foster entry into a neuroscience research-centered career for undergraduates with a strong interest in neuroscience. 

Students apply for positions in a 2-months summer program with flexible starting dates. During the program, they will actively participate in research projects in the laboratories of NYU Shanghai neuroscience faculty. 

We match students to laboratories primarily on the basis of their background preparation and areas of interest. They work either directly with faculty or with graduate students or postdoctoral fellows. Each student conducts a research project under the direction of his or her mentor. The students are involved in all phases of the research process from experimental design to data analysis and communication of results. At the end of the program, a presentation and a project summary are required. Successful applicants will receive financial support from NYU Shanghai.  

Research Areas

Applicants are required to state their areas of interest in a personal statement. Below is a list of faculty interested in hosting students in their labs:

Li Li (Visual perception, Visuomotor control, Eye-hand coordination, Virtual reality)

Sukbim Lim (Computational neuroscience, learning and memory, neural network modeling analysis)

Zhong-Lin Lu (Visual Perception, Psychophysics, Attention, Perceptual Learning, Brain Imaging)

Xing Tian (Cognitive neuroscience, Action and perception, Speech and language, Learning and memory, Mental imagery)

Zhuo-Cheng Xiao  (Computational Neuroscience; Mathematical theories for spiking networks; Neural Oscillations; Visual Cortex)

* In alphabetical order of the last names

Requirements

Applicants must be undergraduates who are or can be in Shanghai for the summer.

Applicants should have strong academic records with courses in biology, mathematics, physics, psychology, computer science or related disciplines, and a GPA >= 3.2.

Applicants must be undergraduates completing their sophomore or junior year and fluent in English.

The duration of the SURP program is 2 months with flexible starting dates. (Please ensure that you have no other commitments during the program).

Application deadline: March 31, 2024

For any inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

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Undergraduate Research Conference

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50th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference: Friday May 3rd, 2024

See the 50th Undergraduate Research Conference Program Here!

Or, access the conference schedule via the NYU mobile app! Download the NYU Mobile app here: iPhone  (link to app store)    Android  (link to app store)

Favorite the speakers and projects you want to see, and add Conference events directly to your calendar!

Click here for instructions for accessing the conference schedule in NYU Mobile

The College takes seriously the role of research in the liberal arts education of undergraduates. Students regularly benefit from direct contact with our research faculty and are empowered and encouraged to conduct their own inquiries. All undergraduates at the University are invited to participate in and present their research at the College’s annual Undergraduate Research Conference on Friday, May 3rd, 2024. Projects in STEM, Social Sciences, and Humanities are welcome!

Congrats to all of the 2023 "Best Presentation" winners!

Application and Conference Details:

Submit your application to participate in the conference here!

2024 Conference Application Opens: January 22nd, 2024

2024 Application deadline: Friday, March 8th, 2024

• A conference application must be submitted to participate - but all NYU students are welcome to participate! 
• DURF recipients are required to present at the URC, but must submit an application
• Participants will have an opportunity to submit a revised/updated abstract for Inquiry
• Abstracts will be published in Inquiry
• Consult the Inquiry Style Guide for information on correctly formatting abstracts
• Poster: Limited to projects in STEM and certain Social Sciences; if you need any tips on posters, here's a great guide on poster presentations and design .
• Panel: Open to projects in any discipline. 8-minute talk with 2 minutes for Q&A. Presenters may use multimedia to add a visual component to their presentations.
• Faculty judges will be on hand to ask questions and interact with presenters.
• Faculty judges will also select a "Best Presentation" winner for each poster group and panel session.

Presentation Workshops:

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Grant Opportunities

Research opportunities.

NEW:  NYU Shanghai Boost Fund  

NEW:  NYU Shanghai Major-Grants Seed Fund  

Postdoctoral Incentive Fund  

The Post Third Year Tenure Review Grant  

SURP – NYU Shanghai Summer Undergraduate Research Program in Neuroscience  

SRPP – NYU Shanghai Summer Undergraduate Research Program in Physics

Gaussian Multiplicative Cascades and Gaussian Multiplicative Chaos

W923, west hall, nyu shanghai new bund campus, thursday, april 25, 2024 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Geometry of Observable Regions for Differential Equations

Tuesday, april 30, 2024 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Superconductivity in Thin-film Infinite-layer Nickelates

Room e301, nyu shanghai new bund campus, tuesday, may 7, 2024 10:00 am to 11:00 am.

Sharp Interface Limit for 1D Stochastic Allen-Cahn Equation in Full Small Noise Regime

Tuesday, april 23, 2024 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm, conferences.

Ten years of Mathematics at NYU Shanghai

Nyu shanghai new bund campus | 567 west yangsi road, pudong new district, shanghai, china, wednesday, may 29, 2024 9:00 am to friday, may 31, 2024 6:00 pm.

2024 International Symposium on Computational Molecular Science and Machine Learning

Nyu shanghai | 567 west yangsi road, pudong new district, shanghai, china, saturday, june 29, 2024 8:30 am.

2023 VINS Annual Conference & Festschrift in Honor of Nobel Laureate Robert Engle

N107 auditorium, friday, november 10, 2023 8:00 am to 5:30 pm.

2023 SoFiE Financial Econometrics Summer School

Online event (via zoom), monday, july 10, 2023 7:00 pm to friday, july 14, 2023 11:00 pm, portal campuses, get in touch.

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NYU Named Nature Index “Rising Star” as Research Output Climbs

NYU ranked #8 research institution in North America—up from #25 in 2016—based on increase in articles in top science journals

New York University has been named a Nature Index 2023 Rising Star and is ranked #8 in North America for its growth in research published in the world’s leading science journals.

The Nature Index 2023 Rising Stars list highlights universities, health systems, nonprofits, and other research organizations that have posted the greatest increases—from 2015 to 2022—in authored or co-authored papers appearing in a list of leading journals chosen by an independent group of scientists. NYU was previously named a Nature Index 2016 Rising Star , ranking 25th among institutions in North America at the time.

“Our designation as a Rising Star and top-10 ranking is yet another proof-point  of the growth and momentum of NYU’s research enterprise; the high-caliber and impactful work our researchers undertake each day in their labs; and the University’s increased commitment to science, technology, and the generation of knowledge,” says Stacie Grossman Bloom, NYU’s vice provost for research and chief research officer.  

Examples of research by NYU scientists and NYU Grossman School of Medicine researchers appearing in Nature Index journals in the most recent year measured include:

• A study published in Science revealing the fountain of youth for ants: an insulin-suppressing protein called Imp-L2. The protein blocks the part of the insulin pathway that is responsible for aging in queen ants, providing clues about aging in other species.
• A Nature study demonstrating a new way to self-assemble particles—an advance that offers new promise for building complex and innovative materials at the microscopic level.
• The first-ever rigorous biophysical model of lizard tail autotomy, revealing the mechanism behind how lizards can lose—and later regenerate—their tails to escape predators. The findings are also published in Science .
• A study in Nature Neuroscience showing alternate origins of Alzheimer’s plaques, with neuronal damage taking root inside of cells well before plaques develop, which could explain why drugs to remove amyloid deposits have failed. 
• A discovery published in Nature Communications of the role that specific cells in the nervous system play in migraine pain, providing potential targets for new treatments.
• A study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on bias in search engines that finds gender-neutral internet searches yield results that produce male-dominated output, which may promote gender bias and potentially influence hiring decisions.
• Research published in Macromolecules on gel-forming protein molecules, which can inform developing new gel materials for biomedical applications such as tissue engineering and drug delivery.

In addition to strong growth in the volume of articles published in top journals, NYU recently announced record rankings in annual R&D spending —another key measure of a university’s research performance. NYU reached #15 nationally and #7 among private universities, according to the National Science Foundation’s annual HERD rankings, with $1.29 billion in research expenditures for fiscal year 2022. In moving up eight spots in the ranking, NYU had the greatest climb among the top 50 U.S. research universities.

Founded in 1831, NYU is one of the world’s foremost research universities (with more than $1 billion per year in research expenditures, it is ranked seventh among private research universities) and is a member of the selective Association of American Universities. NYU has degree-granting university campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai and has 13 other global academic sites, including London, Paris, Florence, Tel Aviv, Buenos Aires, and Accra, and US sites in Washington, DC, Los Angeles, CA, and Tulsa, OK. Through its numerous schools and colleges, NYU is a leader in conducting research and providing education in the arts and sciences, law, medicine, business, dentistry, engineering, education, nursing, the cinematic and performing arts, music and studio arts, public service, social work, public health, and professional studies, among other areas.

Press Contact

Bristol Neuroscience Research Network

An approach for going beyond randomised controlled trials to assess treatment effect heterogeneity across target populations.

1 May 2024, 1.00 PM

Professor Richard Grieve (Professor of Health Economics Methodology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)

LG.08 Canynge Hall

Hosted by the Health Econimics Bristol group

Abstract: Methods have been developed for transporting evidence from Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) to target populations that use ‘real-world’ data for example from electronic health records (EHR). However, these approaches only allow for differences in baseline characteristics that are observed in both the RCT and the EHR data, and effect modification that is due to these observed measures (overt heterogeneity). Hence, these approaches do not recognise that treatment effects may be heterogenous due to unmeasured characteristics (essential heterogeneity).

In this talk I combine a target trial design with a local instrumental variable (LIV) approach to examine both forms of heterogeneity in assessing the comparative effectiveness of two second-line treatments for type 2 diabetes mellitus using data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). These methods can provide useful new information to help target new treatments for individual patients, including subgroups excluded from RCTs. I will also discuss the role of IV methods in a future research agenda for making better use of EHR data to inform decision-making.

Biography: Richard Grieve is Professor of Health Economics Methodology London School of Hygiene and Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Public Health and Policy at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Richard’s current research focuses on the development and application of casual inference approaches to improve the evidence available for decision-making. Richard leads a methodological study on developing instrumental variable methods for ‘personalised’ treatments, and applied studies evaluating emergency surgery, alternative treatments for type 2 diabetes mellitus, and radiotherapy for early-stage cancers.

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Enquiries to  Jackie Bonnick

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Simons Foundation

Shenoy undergraduate research fellowship in neuroscience (surfin).

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The Shenoy Undergraduate Research Fellowship in Neuroscience (SURFiN) program aims to spark and sustain interest in neuroscience among undergraduate students whose backgrounds and experiences are underrepresented in science. SURFiN provides funds for paid research internships for undergraduate students living near participating laboratories that are supported by the Simons Foundation. SURFiN undergraduate fellows will gain hands-on in-person research experience during the 2024–2025 academic year with direct mentorship, typically from early-career scientists, such as graduate students and postdoctoral researchers.

We are invested in supporting the next generation of researchers and recognize that diversity improves scientific innovation and collaboration. Through programs like SURFiN, we aim to expand access to research experiences, support early-career scientists in advancing in their careers, and work to create a more inclusive research training environment. Prior lab experience is not necessary.

Stipend is equivalent to $25/hour for 10 hours a week over 30 weeks (2024-25 academic year).

Internships may be in the following disciplines:

• neuroscience
• computational neuroscience
• systems neuroscience
• cognitive science

For more information, lab locations and eligibility requirements, read more HERE .

Deadline to apply is May 1, 2024.

University of Notre Dame

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Creating Futures in Research: how neuroscience fosters undergraduate inquiry

Published: April 23, 2024

Author: Madeline Schlehuber

Nadia Nosek (‘24) knew from her start at Notre Dame that she wanted to study neuroscience. But she also knew she didn’t want to be pre-med. “I had no clue what I was going to do,” said Nosek. “I just knew I wanted to take more neuroscience classes!”

Neuroscience research came to Nosek “at the perfect time,” she said. During her sophomore year, she joined the Sleep Stress and Memory Lab ( SAM Lab ), directed by Jessica Payne . Payne is a professor in the Department of Psychology .

In the lab, Nosek shows participants negative and neutral images, and helps perform a memory test to see if participants’ age and sleep quality affect their memory differently for negative and neutral information.

“I finally thought … ‘this is the type of work I’ve been looking for in science.’ Without the experiences here, I wouldn’t have known that my interests and skill sets lend themselves to research,” said Nosek.

As a team lead, Nosek organizes a group that processes the quantitative data about the participants' brain activity from the study.

“I taught myself Python, and I learned R (computer languages) as a part of my honors thesis this year to help organize and visualize data. I am interested in brain and tech interfaces as a possible graduate course of study, so I want to learn as much as I can now, and I have really enjoyed learning python so far,” she said.

In addition to her research with Payne, Nosek also works in the lab of Diane Lane , assistant teaching professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, using a mouse model to study drug addiction. Nosek enjoys working with the 3D printer to create a prototype of a device they intend to use in the lab.

As a senior, Nosek has also been balancing her time in research labs with writing her honors thesis. Nosek works to “show participants negative and neutral images, and perform a memory test to see if participants’ level of optimism changes how they move their eyes to look at images, and how well they remember the images later on,” she said. Nosek hopes to get her thesis published in the future.

After graduating in May, Nosek will work at a lab studying traumatic brain injury at Boston Children’s Hospital. Until then, she is busy working as a tour guide, rock climbing, tutoring elementary school kids in reading, and being a teaching assistant for a neuroscience class. She hopes to continue her passion for research with a doctorate in neuroscience someday, and maybe even become a professor.

“I am such a neuroscience nerd,” laughed Nosek. “It’s true. I am just so grateful that the neuroscience faculty are so cool and supportive, and I’m grateful that they have pushed me to really get where I am today.”

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Two CNC trainees receive NSF Graduate Research Fellowships

We are excited to congratulate two CNC trainees who have received NSF Graduate Research Fellowships this spring.

Ilse Dippenaar, a Neuro program grad in Adrienne Fairhall’s lab, has been awarded one for her work on the generation of variability in birdsong.

Matt Helton, an AMATH research assistant in the Shea-Brown Lab, has been awarded a GRF that he will take to NYU where he begins his PhD this fall.