Neuroscience Orientation 2016 Welcome to USC ! Welcome to USC !

1. Neuroscience Orientation 2016 Welcome to USC ! Welcome to USC !

2. Neuroscience Orientation 2016 A. Welcome & Introduction B. Advising: Academic / Pre-Health C. Supplemental Instruction D. Student organizations: Nu Rho Psi, InterAxon, and “Neuroscience Club” E. Research Opportunities F. Honors Program G. Reception

3. Neuroscience Executive Committee Director •Assoc. Prof. Jason Zevin, PSYC/LING (zevin@usc.edu) Faculty Representative •Prof. Chien-Ping Ko, BISC (cko@usc.edu) Student Representatives •Nu Rho Psi •Interaxon •“Neuroscience Club” Academic Advisors •Elizabeth Linkous (linkous@usc.edu) •Lucy Leon (lucyleon@usc.edu) Program Assistant •Gloria Wan (yuhungw@usc.edu)

4. Three ways to “do” Neuroscience at USC All Neuroscience majors take a core set of courses covering molecular, cellular, systems and cognitive neuroscience, and electives that provide exposure to specific topics in the field. Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience • Broad background in life sciences • Very solid preparation for advanced training in medical/health careers Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience • More flexibility • You can go deeper into a particular sub-discipline • Sample a wider array of advanced courses. Bachelor of Science in Computational Neuroscience • Focus on “dry lab” techniques: Simulation modeling, artificial intelligence/robotics, neuroinformatics (lots of coding!) • Solid preparation for advanced training/careers in engineering, “big data” fields

5. Academic Advising Academic Advising To make an advising appointment, please call: 213-740-3800 Location: AHF 107

6. Advising Services • 30 minute, 1-on-1 advisement appointments • Make course recommendations • Create Course Plans • Degree Audits • Lift Advising Holds • Connect to Campus Resources • Mid-term “at risk” Grade Outreach • Navigate Academic Policies

7. Supplemental Instruction http://dornsife.usc.edu/supplemental-instruction/

8. Research Neuroscience is a huge, incredibly active, field of research. Over 100 labs on campus are doing neuroscience research of one kind or another. Getting involved is easy, and has a lot of benefits. http://ngp.usc.edu/research/

9. Why get involved in research as an undergraduate? Be a part of something: • Labs are actually small communities of students, technicians, and faculty members Learning experience: • Develop “wet lab” and/or computational skills • Learn how to think like a scientist • Find out what your professors do all day besides teaching • Figure out whether a career in research is for you Career development: • Letters of recommendation • Honors • Publications

10. Howdo I get involved in research as an undergraduate? Find a lab that is doing work you’re interested in: • Talk to students who are already doing research (you’ll meet some in a minute) • Check out faculty/lab research pages • Go to the Neuroscience Graduate Program Symposium and other events (we’ll remind you of them!) Get involved: • Email the PI (Principle Investigator) of the lab you’re interested in. Try to provide a sense of why you’re interested in their lab in particular. Treat your meeting with the PI like a job interview! • Get support ($$): • Gateway/McNair, Provost’s Fellowship, Rose Hills, SURF/SOAR, WISE… • Work/study, student employee

11. What to expect from your first lab position No one is going to “pass you the rock” on day one • You’ll start off doing some fairly basic, routine work. This is usually a good thing: o You will get to spend time in the lab environment, develop rapport with other folks in the lab, get comfortable with the overall research by attending lab meetings and journal clubs o Ease into more complex tasks/greater responsibility • But it can be a bad thing: o You might get stuck doing repetitive tasks and not learn much •

12. What to expect from your first lab position Moving up/moving out • Look for opportunities to get involved in the research at a higher level: o Keep up with reading for lab meetings o If that stuff doesn’t make any sense, ask for (or search for) reviews or secondary sources o Ask to “shadow” students and technicians doing procedures, analyses, etc. that you want to learn more about o Ask to develop a fellowship or 490 proposal with the PI! Is this lab not for you? • It happens. • Don’t give up on research because you stalled out in one lab! • Faculty don’t take it personally. I help students figure out where to go next all the time.

13. On persistence. Research is all about trying things out and seeing what happens. Making mistakes, doing experiments that “fail,” having to go back and redo things because you discovered a mistake…that’s most of science. Don’t get discouraged by experiments that don’t “work” or making mistakes. That’s how you learn.

14. When to get involved in research Soon! Keep an eye out for interesting research that’s going on around campus, like, now! If you want to do an honors project, or have a publication by the time you graduate you’ll want to be knee-deep in research by the end of your third year. …so ideally you’ll be working in a lab (even just a few hours a week) sometime in your second year...

15. Honors Program The honors program can help you launch a career in research: •Meet other honors students •Learn to prepare written/oral presentations •Get exposure to a broad range of neuroscience research Requirements: •GPA  3.5 •NEUR 493 Honors Seminar • 1 unit x 2 classes (2 units total) •NEUR 490 Research • 4 total units •NEUR 494 Honors Thesis •Submit thesis http://dornsife.usc.edu/usc-neuroscience/honors_program/

16. What parts of the brain are involved when people are immersed in the world of a story? Jhonatan Linares o Junior o Working in the BCI with Prof. Jonas Kaplan o Collecting and analyzing (FMRI) data o We’re looking for subjects:

17. Synaptic Neurobiology Mehak Khan How did I wind up in a synaptic homeostasis and plasticity lab? oSenior oMajor: Computational Neuroscience (B.S.) oMinor: Classics oDickman laboratory What does it mean to “work in a lab”? What do I do on a daily basis in lab? Why I love what I’m doing!

18. Nu Rho Psi

19. Who are we? Nu Rho Psi is the National Honor Society in Neuroscience, founded in 2006 by the Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience and now an independent honor society. We are a non-profit, grass-roots organization comprised of neuroscientists, like you. Currently, charters have been awarded to over 40 chapters in all regions of the United States.

20. Purpose • Encourage professional interest and excellence in scholarship, particularly in Neuroscience • Award recognition to students who have achieved such excellence in scholarship • Advance the discipline of Neuroscience • Encourage intellectual and social interaction between students, faculty, and professionals in Neuroscience and related fields • Promote career development in Neuroscience and related fields • Increase public awareness of Neuroscience and its benefits for the individual and society • Encourage service to the community

21. Requirements • Major, minor, other emphasis in Neuroscience • Completion of at least 3 semesters of the College course. • Completion of 9 semester hours of Neuroscience-related courses. • Undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.5 and a minimum GPA of 3.5 in Neuroscience courses.

22. Events • Mentorship Programs • Neuroscience-Related Volunteering • Tedx Neuroscience • Special Events (Active members only)

23. Perks • Course Assistance • 24/7 access to upperclassman • Discounts for GRE/ MCAT prep classes* • Informational meetings • Scholarship opportunities

24. Get Involved  Interested in a cabinet position? • nurhopsiusc@gmail.com  Sign up sheet towards back of the room!

25. defin. Neuroscience community visits under-served K-12 students to present that about science in general and in particular

26. Join our mailing list! Usc.interaxon@gmail.com FB: “USC Interaxon”

27. The Neuroscience Club • Research opportunities • Talks • Socials • Study sessions • Discussions • Q & A

28. MONTHLY INFORMATION SESSIONS