<p>I am currently a junior, have 1.5 years left at UW-Madison. I am thinking of applying to grad school for neuroscience, thinking of computational, systems, maybe cognitive. I am also interested in brain imaging. I am wondering about opinions on what my chances are of getting into programs, and if anyone was in a similar position as me, or has any advice.</p>
<p>My majors are psychology, neurobiology, and I am hoping to get a certificate(minor) in computer science. My GPA is 3.85, conservatively, it might go down when I take all the CS courses, but maybe not. </p>
<p>I've worked in 3 labs in the last 2 years, only one of them neurobiology. My current lab has nothing to do with neuroscience, but I do work with modeling software (no programming), and if I'm smart enough, maybe will get a paper or two published before graduation. </p>
<p>My math background is quite minimal though. I've taken first calc, stats, calc based physics, and will take discrete math, second calc, and 5 more comp-sci courses before graduation, which is still pretty minimal for computational programs it seems.</p>
<p>So what are my opinions? Should I take an extra year to take more math/comp sci courses? Do I have any chances of getting into programs with only what I described? Should I find a neuro lab instead, take a year off? I'm especially interested in computational neuro, since I have a feeling that it could help transitioning into industry if the whole PhD thing doesn't work out. Anyone know if that is a correct assumption?</p>
<p>If you like the math/comp sci courses go for it even if your GPA does take a bit of a hit it should still be high and fine. Neuroscience is very interdisciplinary so it’ll look cool and you may have an edge over some of your peers in desirability (depending on comp neuro program). Don’t underestimate your modeling.</p>
<p>More research never hurts but only take the year off if you really need to and know you can support yourself financially and otherwise through it. </p>
<p>As for comp sci the rumor mill from friends says the job aspects aren’t good, but that’s just the rumor mill. I know for sure as a neurosci major it’s brutal out there.</p>
<p>What exactly do you mean by brutal? The PhD program admittance is very competitive? No job prospects? Sometimes I feel like everyone is saying their job prospects are bad, but I guess that’s the recession for you.</p>
<p>For computational/theoretical neuroscience programs having a good math/quantitative background is essential. You should try to get a good footing in : Fourier analysis, dynamical systems, complexity analysis, linear algebra, stochastic processes and multivariate calculus. If you cannot take the appropriate courses before graduating, I would highly recommend taking a year off to strengthen your background and get research experience. I know some of the people applying to these programs and they are also strong candidates for Math/Physics PhD programs at top universities. R.e. job prospects, I would not worry too much about it right now; the most important thing you should think about is whether you enjoy research – this is of course my personal take on the matter.</p>