Sewanee’s Neuroscience curriculum is designed to cultivate core competencies in neuroscience.

Students explore core subdisciplines in neuroscience and engage in hands-on laboratory courses that allow them to develop and conduct inquiry-driven research projects in neuroscience. Flexible, interdisciplinary electives enable students to expand their appreciation of neuroscience while pursuing their interests and goals.

Programs of Study

Requirements for the Major & Minor in Neuroscience
Requirements for the Major & Minor in Biology | Website
Requirements for the Major & Minor in Psychology | Website

A Sampling of Courses

Introduction to Neuroscience
Neuroscience

The brain is incredibly elegant, complex, and dynamic. This course offers an introduction to multiple ways that scientists (you!) understand and explore the brain. We will learn how brain cells communicate and how different brain structures contribute to our rich repertoire of behaviors and thought processes. Topics (e.g., vision, movement, motivation, memory) will be discussed from the level of molecules up through how brain circuits interact. By the end of this course, you will have gained a broad understanding of how the brain works and contributes to our everyday experiences.

NEUR 101
Being Human in STEM
Nond

This course is an interdisciplinary, project-based learning course focused on exploring and promoting diversity and inclusion within the STEM community.. Students and instructors collaborate to investigate issues related to belonging in STEM on campus and beyond, by evaluating scientific literature on diversity and inclusion within STEM fields, developing tools and approaches, and sharing findings with the community. This course is intended for students interested in pursuing a STEM major.

NOND 130
Cognitive Neuroscience
Neuroscience

Cognitive neuroscience is a relatively young field that has risen from the union of neuroscience and cognitive psychology. This course uses a systems-level approach to understanding how the brain realizes various cognitive processes, including attention, learning, memory and executive control. How do we adjust our behavior after making errors? How do we stay focused on one task when we are constantly bombarded by distractions? We will discuss how cognitive neuroscientists use a combination of anatomical, physiological and behavioral measures to answer these pressing questions.

NEUR 225
Drugs & Behavior
Psychology

Myriad drugs are used in recreational and/or medical contexts, and play a complex role in our society. The course explores major principles of pharmacology to understand how drugs impact behavioral and cognitive processes. We will explore major biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors that contribute to various patterns of drug use and abuse, including dependence and addiction, and evaluate various approaches to addiction treatment. We will also analyze primary literature in psychology and neuroscience and evaluate how drug-related research informs healthcare policy, legalization, mental health services, and approaches to human flourishing. At the end of this course, you will have gained a broad understanding of how drugs act on the brain to influence our behavior and the complex ways that substance use impacts our communities.

PSYC 349
Ion Channels and Disease
Neuroscience

Ion channels are responsible for the electrical signaling in the nervous system and in this course we will examine ion channel structure and function including the addressing what makes ion channels so selectively permeable to specific ions, and how do membrane potential changes and neurotransmitters act to open ion channels. For most of the course we will discuss research articles that detail ion channel dysfunction and how this can lead to disorders such as epilepsy, paralysis, color-blindness, and myotonia, and where possible, what steps can be taken to alleviate or cure these disorders.

NEUR 415
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See What Our Students Have To Say

Haven Watson C'20
Student Testimonials

"I began studying the brain because I was interested in why humans behave the way we do, and Neuroscience is the foundation of the most basic and complex human function and behavior. An understanding of human behavior creates empathy for others, which is likely why the Neuroscience program is filled with some of the best people on campus. Plus, it’s always really cool to say “Yeah, I majored in Neuroscience!”

Revie Atkinson C'23
Student Testimonial

“I am so thankful for Sewanee’s Neuroscience Department for helping foster my love of science. I find I am able to get involved within the world of science in ways that are both impactful and meaningful not only to myself but to science itself. I feel confident knowing I am helping make a difference.” 

Madeleine Rumingan C'22
Student Testimonials

“There is only so much that we know about the brain today, from ion channel activity to the neurobiological mechanisms to human thought and behavior. The Sewanee Neuroscience program does an excellent job at helping you explore what’s known and what’s unknown.”

Anna Püsök, C'23
Student Testimonials

“I love the Neuroscience Program at Sewanee because of its faculty and community. The professors are dedicated to providing the best learning experience: they are very helpful, and make every single class interesting, and they help us find amazing internships and prepare us for our careers after Sewanee. The neuroscience community is very close, I get to take classes with many of the same people, and I made a lot of friends through the program. Every class that I've taken has been fun and very interesting, and I'm really happy to be a part of the program!”

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Seif Selim C'23
Student Testimonials

''Neuroscience is a rapidly evolving field of science that involves a lot of metacognition as I like to think of it as a brain trying to untangle its own complexity. The Neuro Program at Sewanee is really amazing in the sense that it immerses students in a variety of fields like neurobiology, behavioral, and cognitive neuroscience. Among the things I appreciate about the program are the accessible undergraduate research opportunities and the supportive faculty.'

Inquiry-based laboratory courses

NEUR351 Experimental Neurobiology

This laboratory course utilizes electrical recordings from a variety of invertebrates to build upon key neurobiological topics illustrating the principles of nervous system communication and the scientific method. An emphasis of the course is the analysis and interpretation of data; both data collected by students in the lab sessions, and data from ground-breaking research papers that have contributed to our understanding of nervous system function. In this course students will also get to design, conduct, and present their own experimental project.

NEUR355 Advanced Cognitive Neuroscience

This course covers the systems-level neural and behavioral bases of human and animal emotion. The course may explore basic theories of emotion, automatic processes, emotion regulation, rewards, social relationships, decision-making, learning and memory, stress, and psychopathology (e.g., depression, anxiety, and personality disorders). Students design and conduct experiments using cognitive neuroscience methodology, analyze the data, and write detailed laboratory reports.

NEUR359 Advanced Behavioral Neuroscience

This course provides an in-depth examination of how the brain influences behavioral processes. Students explore underappreciated but critical aspects of behavioral neuroscience, such as the complex interactions between hormones and behavior. Throughout the course, we will learn and apply standard behavioral assays and neurobiological techniques to understand the biological roots of animal behavior. As a class, we will design and perform a novel research project using mice, on a topic of your choosing (e.g., sex differences, stress, learning and memory, alcohol), analyze and interpret data, and present findings in a formal paper and a local undergraduate research conference.

Spend a Semester at Yale

A diverse and developing collection of innovative collaborations between Sewanee and Yale School of Medicine combining the unique strengths these two institutions offer tremendous possibilities for students, faculty, and community partners both on the Mountain and in New Haven. Our cross-institutional collaborations range from courses to research projects to community engagement efforts. The partnership between these two institutions continues to grow and evolve and the opportunities are many.

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The Sewanee-at-Yale internship is an eight-week experience in biomedical research at the Yale Child Study Center at the Yale School of Medicine. Interns are placed in research laboratories, exposed to clinical settings, and get to see the day-to-day workings of a behavioral neuroscience research laboratory.

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Get Your Research Published
Journal of Sewanee Science

The Journal of Sewanee Science, a semiannual magazine, was founded in 2015 as a venue for Sewanee students to highlight their work. All research articles are reviewed by Sewanee alumni, giving both past and current students the opportunity to participate in, and learn from, the process of scientific publishing. The Advent 2018 issue features Amanda Watters and her research on pre-gestational oxycodone exposure and its impacts on maternal motivation, caregiving, and drug seeking.

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