NSB Major
Major Requirements
The NSB major requires the completion 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. For detailed information about the required courses, click on "NSB Major Requirements" below.
An important note for pre-med students
Declaring a NSB Major
Students should first meet with their pre-major academic advisor to discuss their intention for declaring the NSB major and for reviewing the accuracy of their degree audit, including transfer credits. To declare the NSB major, students should [1] complete the questionnaire at this link and [2] submit the major declaration form on Slate. Students do not have to request an academic advisor prior to declaring, as the department will pair each student with an NSB faculty member for advising. Students must declare a major by March 1 of their sophomore year.
FAQ about the Major and NSB Courses
• Prof. Peter Balsam (Department Chair) pbalsam@barnard.edu
- Questions about Major declaration
- Questions about Senior Thesis
• Prof. Kara Pham (Departmental Representative) kpham@barnard.edu
- Questions about Major declaration
- Questions about NSB major requirements
- Questions about lab courses
- Questions about transfer credits for the NSB major
- Questions about summer courses
- Questions about seminars
- Questions about Chemistry Department courses
• Prof. Liz Bauer ebauer@barnard.edu
- Questions about Biology Department courses
• Prof. Russell Romeo rromeo@barnard.edu
- Questions about Psychology Department courses
• Prof. John Glendinning jglendin@barnard.edu
- Questions about Summer Research Institute (SRI)
• Dr. Michele Miozzo (Department Administrator) mmiozzo@barnard.edu
- Can help you find the best faculty member when you are not sure how to get your questions answered or problem solved
- Can help in finding research opportunities
- Questions about Independent Studies
Students should first meet with their current academic advisor to discuss their intention for declaring the NSB major and for reviewing the accuracy of their degree audit, including transfer credits. To declare the NSB major, students should [1] complete the questionnaire at this link and [2] submit the major declaration form on Slate. Students do not have to request an academic advisor prior to declaring, as the department will pair each student with an NSB faculty member for advising.
Any faculty member in the NSB Department can serve as your advisor. You should pick somebody whose area of interest overlaps with yours and/or somebody with whom you feel comfortable. Make sure you confirm that she/he is accepting new advisees at this time. You should realize that selecting an advisor is an important decision, but not a momentous one. You can always change your advisor, and you are welcome to consult with other faculty members. If you do not have an advisor in mind, the department will assign you one.
Several courses in the Departments of Psychology and Biological Science at Columbia can be used to fulfill NSB major requirements. The list of Overlapping CU Courses can be found here.
• Q: How do I sign up for introductory Biology courses? A: There are several introductory courses offered by the Biology Department here at Barnard. Please visit the Department's website for course descriptions and information on signing up for lectures and labs.
• Q: How do I sign up for upper-level Biology courses? A: All upper-level Biology labs are limited to 16 students. When you register for one of these labs, you will automatically be put on the wait-list. Seniors will be taken off the wait-list first, followed by juniors. Please note that if you receive a seat in a lab, you must attend the first lab. If you are absent from this lab meeting, you will be dropped from the course and your seat will be filled by another student.
• Q: I didn't get into my preferred upper-level Biology lab? What do I do now? A: If you do not get into your first choice lab course you may sign-up for a spot on the wait-list. L courses now have a wait-list function as explained on the Registrar website.
- For questions about Biology Department courses please contact Prof. Liz Bauer ebauer@barnard.edu
The NSB department offers several courses on topics related to cognitive neuroscience: (a) Arrested or Adaptive Development of the Adolescent Brain (NSBV BC2008); (b) Disorders of the Mind & the Brain (NSBV BC2006); (c) Visual Neuroscience (NSBV BC3381); (d) Rhythms of the Brain (NSBV BC3384). Other courses are offered in other departments at Barnard and Columbia and approved as elective courses for the NSB major - these courses are listed on this page of the department's website.
The NSB department currently offers two courses related to computational neuroscience: Fundamentals in Computational Neuroscience (NSBV BC2004) and The Neural Code (NSBV BC3386). For students looking to go deeper on the computational neuroscience track, our faculty recommend that they look at the courses listed at The Center for Neural Engineering and Computation at Columbia. (Please note that it is possible that a course listed here is not approved as an elective counting for the NSB major.) The course Computational Neuroscience: Circuits in the Brain (BMEB W4020) is specifically recommended.
• Q: How do I sign up for introductory Biology courses? A: There are several introductory courses offered by the Biology Department here at Barnard. Please visit the Department's website for course descriptions and information on signing up for lectures and labs.
• Q: How do I sign up for upper-level Biology courses? A: All upper-level Biology labs are limited to 16 students. When you register for one of these labs, you will automatically be put on the wait-list. Seniors will be taken off the wait-list first, followed by juniors. Please note that if you receive a seat in a lab, you must attend the first lab. If you are absent from this lab meeting, you will be dropped from the course and your seat will be filled by another student.
• Q: I didn't get into my preferred upper-level Biology lab? What do I do now? A: If you do not get into your first choice lab course you may sign-up for a spot on the wait-list. L courses now have a wait-list function as explained on the Registrar website.
- For questions about Biology Department courses please contact Prof. Liz Bauer ebauer@barnard.edu
This is a question we receive a lot: "I am a sophomore following the new NSB major curriculum. Are PSYC BC1101 Statistics or Columbia’s STAT UN1101 Introduction to Statistics an acceptable swap for NSB Statistics & Research Design?"
Answer: Students have many options. Statistics & Research Design is offered by the NSB department. NSB Statistics & Research Design course emphasizes experimental design and places less emphasis on statistics than BC1101 or UN1101. NSB Statistics & Research Design is more relevant to thinking about how to understand brain and behavior and is the course introduced in the new NSB curriculum. Other courses that meet the NSB major requirement are PSYC BC1101 Statistics and three Columbia courses (STAT UN1101 Introduction to Statistics, STAT UN1201 Calculus-based Introduction to Statistics, and PSYC UN1610 Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences).
The course Independent Study offers students the opportunity to earn credits while conducting a research project. You can learn more about this course here.
Question: What courses count for a major/minor or a double major?
Answer: Students are not permitted to double count a class for a major/minor or a double major. For example, NSB senior thesis may not be used to satisfy a requirement for any other major/minor.
The rule that prohibits double counting of major/minor classes means that a student who elects to add a major or minor in addition to NSB typically chooses a second discipline that has no overlap at all with the NSB major, i.e., majoring in NSB and minoring in English.