Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience

Neuroscience is the study of the nervous system from elementary molecular events to integrative outputs such as behavior and autonomic control. The PhD program in Neuroscience at WSU includes classroom discussions of primary neuroscience literature, courses designed specifically to teach students scientific reasoning and training in proposal writing and oral presentation skills. However, the bulk of the program is spent pursuing a scientific question that includes the design and completion of an original investigation. Students develop their project under the expert guidance of well-funded and renowned neuroscientists on the faculty at WSU. Members of the graduate faculty in the Program in Neuroscience come from multiple departments, colleges, and campuses from across the University, thus giving students a broad selection of mentors and potential topics for their thesis research. Students in the graduate Program in Neuroscience participate in the activities sponsored by the Integrated Program in Biomedical Sciences (iPBS). All programs that participate in iPBS have a common core curriculum in the first semester (rotations, professional development, and classes in scientific reasoning and quantitative analysis). After completion of the first semester of study, students have the option to change programs and complete their degree in anyone of the participating programs. Participating programs include Neuroscience, Molecular Bioscience, Immunology and Infectious Diseases and Combined Residency PhD Programs (Anatomic Pathology and Clinical Microbiology).