Neuroscience: News and Discussions.
↑
8
↓
Considering Neuroscience, any advice? (self.neuroscience)
submitted 11y ago by FF175
I've become more and more interested in possibly beginning to study Neuroscience and I wanted to reach out to the community for any advice.
I'm considering going back to school to work towards a career in Neuroscience. I got about halfway through Kandel's Principles of Neural Science a few months ago, while working through MIT's biology course, to brush up on some of my knowledge.
I'm particularly interested in Alzheimers related research, and wondering what the best course of action would be. I've completed some college(music business/gen eds mostly), and wondering whether I should look at a NS undergrad program or look to compete a BS with an eye towards an NS grad program.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
I'm considering going back to school to work towards a career in Neuroscience. I got about halfway through Kandel's Principles of Neural Science a few months ago, while working through MIT's biology course, to brush up on some of my knowledge.
I'm particularly interested in Alzheimers related research, and wondering what the best course of action would be. I've completed some college(music business/gen eds mostly), and wondering whether I should look at a NS undergrad program or look to compete a BS with an eye towards an NS grad program.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
AwwYeahBonerz 3 points
My experience is a bit odd, so wait for a more 'regular track' person to chime in but I'll throw my advice into the mix:
Neuroscience is a huge field and people with careers in neuroscience come from a variety of backgrounds though a few things are constant: If you want to research with a bit of choice on what you do you need a Phd. Otherwise you can research with a BS though you'll be told what to do and you be constantly at the whims of funding which you have no control over (very low job security). So if you want to do neuroscience on a research topic of your choice, get a BSc (doesn't have to be in neuroscience could be in auxilary field), get a Phd. There are many people with neuroscience Phds looking for work so, like virtually all academic fields, you are going to be facing stiff competition the whole way. It's a long, hard road and the main reward will be the chance to work on exactly what you want. Again, because neuroscience is a massive, relatively new field, there is potential to enter the field from a variety of angles (I entered from physics) and 'do' a bunch of different things. If you have any other questions maybe I can help. Also, where do you live? If you live in the States/Canada, expect the whole journey to take at least 8 years (assuming you work very hard and are very bright) but probably 10. If you live in UK/Euro, it's possible to do the whole thing in 6 but will prolly end up taking around 8. I can't comment on the length of studies in other areas.
Neuroscience is a huge field and people with careers in neuroscience come from a variety of backgrounds though a few things are constant: If you want to research with a bit of choice on what you do you need a Phd. Otherwise you can research with a BS though you'll be told what to do and you be constantly at the whims of funding which you have no control over (very low job security). So if you want to do neuroscience on a research topic of your choice, get a BSc (doesn't have to be in neuroscience could be in auxilary field), get a Phd. There are many people with neuroscience Phds looking for work so, like virtually all academic fields, you are going to be facing stiff competition the whole way. It's a long, hard road and the main reward will be the chance to work on exactly what you want. Again, because neuroscience is a massive, relatively new field, there is potential to enter the field from a variety of angles (I entered from physics) and 'do' a bunch of different things. If you have any other questions maybe I can help. Also, where do you live? If you live in the States/Canada, expect the whole journey to take at least 8 years (assuming you work very hard and are very bright) but probably 10. If you live in UK/Euro, it's possible to do the whole thing in 6 but will prolly end up taking around 8. I can't comment on the length of studies in other areas.
FF175 [OP] 2 points
Appreciate the response, through my research I assumed I'd have to go the PhD route. I'm based in NYC and have been looking at US/UK schools thus far, haven't looked into Canada yet, although I do love Montreal. My goal at the moment is to find out how to best position myself to get into a NS or biology undergrad program.
As my college experience is mediocre(wasn't truly what I was interested in) and unrelated thus far, this has been tricky.
As of now I'm thinking of looking into a foundation year at a UK school or doing a couple semesters of introductory bio/NS courses, with an eye towards applying/transferring to a full time program.
As my college experience is mediocre(wasn't truly what I was interested in) and unrelated thus far, this has been tricky.
As of now I'm thinking of looking into a foundation year at a UK school or doing a couple semesters of introductory bio/NS courses, with an eye towards applying/transferring to a full time program.
macmurdo 2 points
I agree with what Bonerz says. I myself am an engineering graduate who went into neuroscience for my PhD. Also, I happen to be one of those US citizens who came to Canada for the cheaper/high quality education so if you have any questions about that, ask away. Finally, if you like Montreal, of course McGill is an excellent option with an excellent neuroscience group, but so is UMontreal. There are several great neuroscience schools located both in Montreal and all over Canada though. One last piece of advice is that if you go the undergrad to grad route spend some time volunteering, working on a thesis project or doing a summer work program in a neuroscience lab at your school. This was how I became exposed to neuroscience and how I realized I have a passion for the field, and, regardless of whether you get that kind of realization or where you are at school, your supervisor may be interested in keeping you on for graduate work :) Anyway, good luck to you!
AwwYeahBonerz 2 points
Well, Canadian schools are much cheaper then American schools though the amount depends on citizenship and comparing state schools etc. If you are going to be doing a full 4 year undergrad apply at a bunch of places and, as you are going the academic route, take the 'best' one, get the best possible grades you can, and repeat the same for Phd. I did my undergrad in Canada and there are many Americans at Canadian schools that went there because it was much cheaper then the states (~20k/y for international vs. ~40k/y for non-state schools in USA such as CMU).
This nonprofit website is run by volunteers.
Please contribute if you can. Thank you!
Our mission is to provide everyone with access to large-
scale community websites for the good of humanity.
Without ads, without tracking, without greed.
scale community websites for the good of humanity.
Without ads, without tracking, without greed.
©2023 HumbleCat Inc • HumbleCat is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Michigan, USA.