The Ph.D. Program in Behavioral and Cellular Neuroscience at Texas A&M University
Behavioral neuroscience represents an exciting and rapidly expanding
field. Graduate training in Behavioral Neuroscience at Texas A&M
University provides students with the opportunity to develop a close
collaborative relationship with a primary advisor. Behavioral Neuroscience
faculty and graduate students meet regularly to discuss current and
ongoing research. An early emphasis on laboratory research allows graduate
students in Behavioral Neuroscience the opportunity to rapidly participate
in the exciting process of disseminating their research findings to
the larger scientific community. Graduate students in the Behavioral
Neuroscience program routinely receive research awards from the Office
of Graduate Studies to provide additional support for their thesis and
dissertation research. Students also receive travel awards regularly
from the Psychology Department and Faculty of Neuroscience that allow
for attendance and participation at prestigious scientific conferences.
As a result, students typically graduate having published several scientific
papers in addition to their Ph.D. dissertation. It is not surprising,
then, that graduates in Behavioral Neuroscience at TAMU have obtained
faculty positions at other first-rate academic institutions (e.g., University
of Arizona, University of Missouri, Kent State University), as well
as prestigious post-doctoral fellowships (e.g., Columbia University,
Yale, and UCLA).
In addition to extensive opportunities for laboratory research, the
Behavioral Neuroscience program at TAMU provides formal classroom instruction
in fundamental neuroscience, and in several specialty topics in biopsychology
including neurobiology of learning and memory, drug addiction, neurotoxicology,
recovery of neural function, psycho-neuroimmunology, cognitive neuroscience,
and psychopharmacology. Several courses offered in the University's
Medical College and Veterinary College are also available, allowing
students to select from a broad range of topics in the neurosciences.
Interdisciplinary training is also available to students via an Interdepartmental
Neuroscience Program in which members of the Behavioral Neuroscience
faculty participate. This affiliation provides important opportunities
for students to obtain funding for research projects, travel to professional
meetings, and collaborate with other laboratories on campus.
The objective of the Behavioral Neuroscience training program is to
prepare students for research and teaching positions in the traditional
academic setting, as well as research scientist positions in government
and industry. Students draw on the guidance, support, and expertise
of faculty members in an environment that provides an excellent student/faculty
ratio (2:1). Core faculty members in Behavioral Neuroscience at Texas
A&M University have garnered a strong national/ international reputation.
Faculty members are recipients of several scientific research grants
funded by prestigious federal organizations including the National Institutes
of Health and the National Science Foundation, as well as University
Teaching Awards. The standard of scholarship exhibited by the Behavioral
Neuroscience faculty is also reflected in the high standards set for
admission to the graduate program; accepted students have an average
GPA of 3.51 and GRE score of 1203. The graduate program in Behavioral
Neuroscience at Texas A&M University is uniquely prepared to train
the next generation of dedicated scholars who will shape our future
understanding of the fundamental relationship between brain function
and behavior.
All graduate students admitted to the Department of Psychology are
provided a fellowship or assistantship that pays a competitive monthly
salary. Almost all students keep their fellowship or assistantship for
their entire period of graduate studies, four or five years. Office space,
computers, and funds to travel to professional conventions are also provided.
The Behavioral Neuroscience program
supports an active speakers series that each year brings to campus a
number of faculty members from other universities. This series provides
exposure to different perspectives on the field and the opportunity
to interact with professors at other institutions.
Training Grant
Our own Mary Meagher has been made PI for the Recovery of Function graduate training program, funded by the Life Science Tast Force. The grant for this project provides about $200,000 for NIH-level graduate stipends and other expenses. The website for this program can be reached with the link below.
http://recovery.tamu.edu
More information about our program can be found at The Ph.D. Program in Behavioral and Cellular Neuroscience at Texas A&M University.
Behavioral and Cellular Neuroscience Faculty
Dr. Jennifer Bizon - Ph.D., University of Califormia, Irvine (1998)
Dr. Antonio Cepeda-Benito - Ph.D., Purdue University (1994)
Dr. Shoshana Eitan - Ph.D. Weizmann Institute of Science
Dr. Jim Grau - Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Michelle Hook - Ph.D., University of New England (1998)
Dr. Mary Meagher - Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1989)
Dr. Mark Packard - Ph.D. McGill University
Dr. Barry Setlow - Ph.D. University of California, Irvine
Dr. Paul Wellman - Ph.D. Iowa State University (1980)
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