Graduate students in good standing at the University of Colorado Boulder in a participating academic unit named below may apply to earn a Triple PhD with Cognitive Science, Neuroscience, and their core discipline.

Requirements for completing the Triple PhD program is found in the Triple PhD Requirements document.

Students interested in the Cognitive Neuroscience Triple PhD must meet the above course and thesis requirements. The student’s thesis advisor must be a participating faculty member of the Cognitive Neuroscience faculty. To enroll in this triple degree, you must enroll in the Neuroscience Program and the Cognitive Science Program as well as your core degree program. Upon acceptance into the program, all students submit periodic Progress Reports. 

Apply for ICS Cognitive Neuroscience Triple PhD Program by
completing the following 3 steps:

Step 1

First be admitted to a CU Boulder graduate program in one
of the following departments/units:
  Architecture and Planning; Computer Science; Information Science;
Integrative Physiology; Linguistics; Philosophy;
Psychology and Neuroscience; School of Education;
Speech, Language, Hearing Sciences. Students enrolled
in graduate programs from other departments may request
approval to participate.
Step 2 Be in good academic standing in one of the above departments
and units.
Step 3 Apply for admission to the PhD Program in the Institute of
Cognitive Science by submitting the following items to the
ICS office located at UCB 344, MUEN PSYCH Building
D414 University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309:
  Submit an ICS application form
Submit an Unofficial Transcript from your department/unit
Submit a Plan of Study

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information on becoming a University of Colorado graduate student prior to applying for the ICS graduate programs, contact the following departments/units directly:
     Architecture and Planning
     Computer Science
     Information Science
     Integrative Physiology
     Linguistics
     Philosophy
     Psychology and Neuroscience
     School of Education
     Speech, Language, Hearing Sciences
     Students enrolled in graduate programs from other departments may request approval
     to participate.

For more information on the cognitive science courses contact:
          Donna Caccamise
          Associate Director and Acdemic Program Director
          Institute of Cognitive Science
          Donna.Caccamise@Colorado.edu

Cognitive Neuroscience--Combined Ph.D. Triple Major: Neuroscience + Cognitive Science + Home Dept.

Total number of units = 28-34

1. Core (11-14 units):

  • Survey and Integration of Neuroscience I (NRSC 5100; 2 credit hours for advanced students; 5 credit hours for students without advanced preparation)
  • Survey and Integration of Neuroscience II (NRSC 5110; 3 credit hours)
  • Issues and Methods (listed in multiple departments; 2 credit hours). Students should complete this course by the end of the second year of their program. By completing this course, students become eligible to apply for travel grants.
  • Research Applications Seminar (formerly Cognitive Science Practicum) (listed in multiple departments; 2 credit hours). This course should be taken as you prepare your dissertation topic proposal or equivalent.
  • Cognitive Science Topics (2 credits hours) This class comes in a 1 unit version (attend Institute talks) or a 2 unit version (attend Institute talks plus meet to discuss those presentations). Thus, one must either take it for 1 semester for 2 units or 2 semesters for 1 unit.

2. Depth Courses (6-9 units)

Pick from Course List below

3. Related Discipline Specialization (11+ units)

Pick from Course List below (currently may not be a complete list – check with Advisor)

A total of 28-34 hours of graduate level courses from the list of Core, Depth, and Breadth courses (see below) are required for the Combined Neuroscience Cognitive Science + Core Discipline PhD. More courses may be required if the student pursues topics outside of the cognitive neuroscience track, taking other courses listed in the approved course listings for the Neuroscience, Cognitive Science, or Core Discipline degrees that do not appear above. Of these 28-34 hours, 11 or 14 hours consist of Core breadth and integration courses for Cognitive Neuroscientists, 6-9 hours consist of Cognitive Neuroscience depth courses, and the remainder are derived from Cognitive Neuroscience-related discipline specialization courses.

In accordance with the graduate school requirements, students will be required to take a comprehensive exam, which they must pass in order to advance to doctoral candidacy status. Successful completion (grade of B- or better) of the Survey and Integration of Neuroscience I and II courses will fulfill the Neuroscience component of the comprehensive exam. In addition, the student must pass a comprehensive exam in their area of specialization. The format of this specialty comprehensive exam will be determined by the student's advisor and will be appropriate for the advisor's department/program of affiliation, but must also be interdisciplinary in nature to fulfill the Cognitive Science component of the comprehensive exam.

All Cognitive Neuroscience PhD students will be required to complete a doctoral thesis with a primary Cognitive Neuroscience focus. The thesis/dissertation will represent original state-of-the art research of quality suitable for publication in a reputable scientific journal. The student's thesis advisor must be a participating faculty member of the Cognitive Neuroscience faculty. In addition, the student's thesis committee must include at least 1 additional Neuroscience faculty member and one Cognitive Science faculty member from outside the student's area of specialization. In accordance with the requirements of the Graduate School, the student's committee must be comprised of a minimum of 5 faculty members that have graduate faculty appointments. The committee will be formed by the student's advisor, upon approval of the slate of members by the Academic Directors of the Neuroscience and Cognitive Science combined PhD Programs.

  • CHEM 5800-3 Cell Regulation
  • CHEM 5801-3 Advanced Signal Transduction and Cell Cycle Regulation

  • CSCI 5622-3 Neural Networks / Machine Learning
  • CSCI 5722-3 Computer Vision
  • CSCI 5832-3 Natural Language Processing
  • CSCI 5919-3 HCI: Survey and Synthesis
  • CSCI 6302-3 Speech Recognition and Synthesis
  • CSCI 6622-3 Advanced Neural Networks / Machine Learning

  • ECEN 5811-3 Neural Signals
  • ECEN 5831-3 Brains, Minds and Computers

  • EBIO 5800 Animal Behavior

  • IPHY 5440-3 Vertebrate Endocrinology
  • IPHY 5580-3 Sleep Physiology
  • IPHY 5600-3 Immunology
  • IPHY 5700-5 Vertebrate Histology
  • IPHY 5720-4 Neurophysiology
  • IPHY 5730-3 Integrative Motor Control
  • IPHY 6010-3 Stress Physiology
  • IPHY 6010-1 Sleep Medicine Seminar (up to 2 semesters)
  • IPHY 6680-3 MATLAB for Physiol. & Biomechan. Res.

  • MCDB 5210-3 Cell Structure and Function
  • MCDB 5250-3 Topics in Developmental Genetics
  • MCDB 5426-3 Cell Signaling and Developmental Regulation
  • MCDB 5471-3 Mechanisms of Gene Regulation in Eukaryotes
  • MCDB 5680-3 Mechanisms of Aging
  • MCDB 5777-3 Molecular Neurobiology

  • PSYC/NRSC 5015-3 Affective Neuroscience
  • PSYC 5032-3 Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
  • PSYC 5052-4 Behavioral Neuroscience (overlaps with NRSC 5100, depending on Instructor)
  • PSYC 5072 Clinical Neuroscience
  • PSYC 5082 Seminar: Special Topics in Biopsychology; can be taken multiple times (2 or 3 units depending on the specific offering)
  • NRSC 5082-3 Neural Circuits of Learning and Decision Making
  • PSYC/NRSC 5092-4 Behavioral Neuroendocrinology
  • PSYC 5102-3 Introduction to Behavioral Genetics
  • NRSC 5100-5 Survey and Integration of Neuroscience I (2 credit hours for advanced students; 5 credit hours for students without advanced preparation)
  • NRSC 5110-3 Survey and Integration of Neuroscience II
  • PSYC 5112-3 Concepts in Behavioral Genetics
  • PSYC 5131-3 Affective Science
  • PSYC 5132-3 Behavioral Neuropharmacology
  • PSYC 5145-4 Advanced Cognitive Psychology
  • PSYC 5162-3 Developmental Behavioral Genetics
  • PSYC 5175-4 Computational Cognitive Neuroscience
  • PSYC 5200-3 Physiological Genetics and Genomics
  • PSYC 5212-3 Gerontology: A Multidisciplinary Perspective
  • PSYC 5232-3 Molecular Genetics/Behavior
  • PSYC/NRSC 5262-3 Mammalian Neuroanatomy
  • PSYC 5272-3 Neuronal Plasticity
  • PSYC 5385-3 Ethology/Comparative Psychology
  • PSYC/NRSC 5545-3 Neurobiology of Addiction
  • PSYC 5606-3 Prosem: Social/Personality Psych
  • PSYC 5665-2 Prosem: Higher-Level Perception & Attention
  • PSYC 5665-2 Prosem: Learning and Memory
  • PSYC 5685-2 Prosem: Sensory Processes
  • PSYC 5685-2 Prosem: Research Methods
  • PSYC 5741-4 Quantitative Methods in Neuroscience
  • PSYC 5815-2 Prosem: Language
  • PSYC 5815-2 Prosem: Higher-Level Cognition
  • PSYC 5825-2 Executive Function Proseminar
  • PSYC 5835: Prosem: Thinking
  • PSYC/NRSC 5911-3 Teaching of Neuroscience
  • NRSC 6100-2 Advances in Neuroscience
  • NRSC 6602-1 Behavioral Neuroscience Professional Skills Development
  • PSYC 6911-(1-3) Research Practicum
  • NRSC 7102-2 or 3 Topics in Neuroscience
  • NRSC 7112-3 Special Topics in Neuroscience I
  • NRSC 7122-3 Special Topics in Neuroscience II
  • NRSC 7132-3 Special Topics in Neuroscience III
  • NRSC 7142-3 Special Topics in Neuroscience IV
  • NRSC 7152-3 Special Topics in Neuroscience V
  • PSYC 7215-3 Translational Cognitive Neuroscience
  • PSYC 7215-3 Mathematical Modeling of Cognition
  • PSYC 7215-3 Principles of fMRI
  • PSYC 7536-3 Theories and Research in Emotion
  • PSYC 7536-3 The Social Brain

  • SLHS 5252-3 Acquired Adult Language Disorders
  • SLHS 5282-3 Acquired Cognitive Disorders
  • SLHS 5292-3 Motor Speech Disorders
  • SLHS 5576-2 Communication Neuroscience
  • SLHS 6006-3 Advanced Hearing Science
  • SLHS 6564-3 Auditory Processes: Neurodiagnostics
  • SLHS 7100-3 Cognitive Bases of Human Communication and its Disorders
  • SLHS 7250-3 Research Methods in Language Development
  • SLHS 7540-3 Auditory Processes: Physiology, Assessment, and Management of the Vestibular System
  • SLHS 8206-3 Models of Speech Production and Perception