Core Faculty:  Peter Balsam (Chair), Kara Pham (Departmental Representative), Elizabeth Bauer, BJ Casey, Maria de la Paz Fernandez, John Glendinning, Gabrielle Gutierrez, Russell Romeo, Rae Silver, Alex White

The new NSBV curriculum requires the completion of a minimum of 13 courses (5 core neuroscience courses; 3 introductory courses from cognate disciplines; 3 elective courses; a year-long research seminar counting as 2 courses) and a senior thesis. All NSBV majors must take 5 core neuroscience courses that provide foundational knowledge and laboratory training. No more than 2/5 core neuroscience courses can be taken outside the NSBV Department, including Columbia University or other institutions. For many courses, NSBV majors have multiple options. Reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of our discipline, students can select introductory and elective courses offered in other departments either at Barnard or Columbia. Furthermore, students have the option of selecting elective courses in one suggested track – cognitive/behavioral, computational, or molecular.

Five Core Neuroscience Courses
NSBV BC1001INTRODUCTION TO NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC2001LABORATORY IN NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC3001SYSTEMS AND BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
BIOL BC3362MOLECULAR & CELLULAR NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC2002STATISTICS AND EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
Three Introductory Courses from Other Disciplines
One course must be Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology (BIOL BC1502 + lab BIOL BC1503); the other courses (1lect; 1lect+lab) from cognate disciplines (Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Physics, or Psychology)
Senior Research Seminar
Seniors can choose among three options: Senior Research Seminar (NSBV BC3593-4), Neuroscience Guided Research (NSBV BC3591-2) or Neuronal Circuits (NSBV BC3590)
Three Elective Courses

Approved electives are listed on the department webpage. One elective course must be a 3000-level seminar.

Fall 2023

NSBV BC1001INTRODUCTION TO NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC2001LABORATORY IN NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC2002STATISTICS AND EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
NSBV BC2004Fundamentals in Computational Neuroscience Models
NSBV BC3405NEUROSCIENCE OF TRAUMA
NSBV BC3361CELLULAR & MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC3381Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to the Mind's Eye
NSBV BC3376PSYCHOBIOLOGY OF INFANT DEVELOPMENT
NSBV BC3384RHYTHMS OF THE BRAIN
NSBV BC3387TOPICS IN NEUROETHICS
NSBV BC3388MODELS OF NEUROPSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS
NSBV BC3385NEUROETHOLOGY
NSBV BC3390NEURONAL CIRCUITS: NEUROGENETICS AND PRINCIPLES OF NEURONAL CONNECTIVITY
NSBV BC3591NEUROSCIENCE GUIDED RESEARCH
NSBV BC3593RSRCH/SEM-NEUROSCNCE&BEHAVIOR
NSBV BC3099INDEPENDENT STUDY

Spring 2024

NSBV BC1001INTRODUCTION TO NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC2001LABORATORY IN NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC2002STATISTICS AND EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
NSBV BC2006MIND/BRAIN DISORDERS
NSBV BC2154HORMONES AND BEHAVIOR
NSBV BC3001SYSTEMS AND BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
NSBV BC3387TOPICS IN NEUROETHICS
NSBV BC3389Hallucinations, illusions, dreaming and imagination
NSBV BC3391NEURONAL CIRCUITS: NEUROGENETICS AND PRINCIPLES OF NEURONAL CONNECTIVITY
NSBV BC3392PSYCHOBIOLOGY OF STRESS
NSBV BC3398PSYCHOBIOLOGY OF SLEEP
NSBV BC3592NEUROSCIENCE GUIDED RESEARCH
NSBV BC3594RSRCH/SEM-NEUROSCNC&BEHAVIOR
NSBV BC3099INDEPENDENT STUDY

Past Courses

(Courses not offered in fall '23 and spring '24))
NSBV BC2003Neuroendocrinology of Stress
NSBV BC2005FLAVOR PERCEPTION AND THE HUMAN DIET
NSBV BC2008ADAPTIVE OR ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT OF THE ADOLESCENT BRAIN
NSBV BC3105Neuroimmunology Seminar
NSBV BC3394Neurobiology of Social Behaviors