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Brain and Cognitive Sciences

The Brain and Cognitive Sciences (BCS) program at SIU emphasizes cognitive behavior approached from a combination of perspectives:

  • Developmental (infancy and childhood, adolescence and aging)
  • Neurobiological (neurophysiology, neuropsychology, genetics)
  • Behavioral (human and animal experimentation)
  • Computational (neural networks, statistical analyses, intelligent software agents)

As an integral part of their training, students become active participants in ongoing faculty research programs in brain and cognitive sciences. Students will receive training in two or more different research methodologies, and are expected to develop a multidisciplinary approach to their own research.

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Features of the BCS Program 

  • Financial Assistance: We offer substantial support, guaranteed to all first-year students and historically available throughout a student’s four years on campus. Students in good standing can anticipate receiving a stipend and a tuition waiver, and all students complete training assignments as teaching or research assistants or in an externship. For more information, see the Financial Assistance page.
  • Teaching: Students have a variety of opportunities to develop teaching and presentation skills. Most students will have at least one training assignment as a teaching assistant. Further opportunities include class presentations, formal thesis and dissertation research presentations, conference presentations, and teaching psychology courses.
  • Atmosphere: Faculty and students are proud of the program’s collegial and supportive atmosphere. We seek to maintain high academic and professional standards, while being responsive to the goals, strengths, and needs of individual students. In general, students report experiencing the program as being highly facilitative of their professional development.

Applying to the Brain & Cognitive Sciences Program

The typical student who is admitted to the BCS program has an undergraduate GPA of 3.4, and GRE scores at the 60th percentile on both verbal and quantitative. Appropriate courses are important (e.g., good grades in research methods, statistics, and science-oriented content courses), and previous experience working in an experimental laboratory helps to demonstrate preparation for graduate-level research.

A strong application will include experience working with experimental methods (e.g., small animal surgery, computer programming, neural imaging) and populations (e.g., rats, children, adults, etc.) that are related to your area of interest. Letters of recommendation from people familiar with the students' work will help to assess the students' skills, experience, and preparation for graduate study.

Compass IconView full degree requirements and check out the progam courses and specialized curriculum to help you outline what courses you should take.

School of Psychological and Behavioral Sciences | College of Health and Human Sciences | 618-536-2301 |