Muhlenberg College To Offer Degree In Neuroscience
The Muhlenberg College faculty have approved the addition of a Bachelor of Science degree in neuroscience to the curriculum.Tuesday, February 10, 2004 00:38 PM
The Muhlenberg College faculty have approved the addition of a Bachelor of Science degree in neuroscience to the curriculum. The interdisciplinary major, which combines coursework from psychology, philosophy, biochemistry, biology and a new neuroscience department, reflects the College's commitment to liberal education and increasing student interest in neuroscience. Directed by Dr. Jeremy Teissere, assistant professor of biology, the program will be available beginning in the fall of 2004.
"A study of the brain can't just include the natural sciences, but also those fields that ask larger questions about the meanings of minds and brains," says Teissere. "We crafted a unique and exciting major that reflects this mission, allowing students to study in and between traditional academic disciplines as they become scholars of the brain. Thus, the major will ask students to become scholars in biology, psychology, philosophy and mathematics in order to foster an integrated understanding of the underpinnings of human behavior."
The neuroscience program will require four core neuroscience classes as well as eight cognate courses in science and three electives for a total of 15 major courses. Three new neuroscience courses - Mind and Brain, Topics in Neuroscience and Neuroscience Research/Independent Study - will be added to the curriculum. Neuroscience majors will be required to complete Principles of Biology I, II and III, General Chemistry I and II, Calculus I, Introduction to Psychology and Philosophy of Mind.
Neuroscience is the first new major at Muhlenberg since the addition of dance in 1999. Muhlenberg is the fourth Lehigh Valley institution to offer neuroscience; Lehigh University, Lafayette College and Cedar Crest College offer a degree in neuroscience.
