Hey guys, I had a, ah, great question. If I did the biology-psychology program, is this the equivalent to a neuroscience undergrad in other school? How hard is the program to get into overall?
Also, for postgraduate work (graduate/professional school), what are my options if I wanted to focus on my undergraduate studies (ie. stay in my field)? for example I know some people study one thing in their undergrad but change their field of study in their postgrad work.
I'm a first year btw.

-cheers!

If you're really interested in Neuroscience, I suggest you go into the Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behaviour program in 2nd year. For grad school, there is a program called MINDS (McMaster Integrative Neuroscience Discovery & Study). Its competitive to get in, but an amazing program collaborating with other universities. You can do your masters, but there's a select few students who are accepted straight into a Phd program.

Hey Samir,
Biology and Psychology isn't really a program in and of itself, it's a double major in Bio and Psych (So you'll be completing the requirements for both a Honours Bology undergrad and a PNB undergrad). If you specifically want to do Neuroscience, going into pure PNB would give you more freedom to pursue the courses that you want than BioPsych. If you do decide to go into BioPsych, the program allows about 50 students a year and the cut off to get in is usually around a "B" (~8).

Also, you can really do anything you want in grad school as long as you meet the minimum requirements, have solid grades, and show an interest in the research. Getting a position in grad school is often determined by which supervisor you want/can get rather than just your undergrad work. Of course doing undergrad research in the same field as the graduate lab you apply to can help, but it is not a requirement.

alrite thanks guys! But, say if I did go into biopsych, what would i be doing that's different than the PNB program (apart from the obvious addition of biology)??

The only difference between biopsych and either bio or psych is that BioPsych students don't have to take the second year research methods course that the PNB students do and that they have to take both organic chemistry courses while bio students only have to take the first

Well there actually are a couple other differences than that
BioPsych students also can use a QQ course as a substitute for Q03 lab courses, whereas other PNB (psych neuro behaviour) students have to take the lab courses and if they take a QQ, then thats just bonus.
Also BioPsych students must do a thesis in fourth year, it is only optional for other majors. Not something to enter into lightly. It is actually a lot of work. Trust me.
If you're just interested in neuro, I recommend PNB

In second year, there were two main differences:
PNB 2XF3 - Research Methods, as tailsnake mentioned. Biopsych students didn't have to take it, but some were able to take it anyway (if they had room in their schedule). It's basically a course where professors from the psych department present colloquiums to the students about their research, and we do presentations on them.

PNB 2XD3 - Integrative PNB, is required for PNB students, but not for Biopsych students, although some decided to take it. It's a course that combines the three core fields of psychology to provide students with a "whole" picture of research, and is meant to improve our scientific writing abilities. In this course, we also have professors come in to talk about certain subjects, but we'll have profs from each of the three perspectives (cognition, animal behaviour, and neuroscience).

If you're passionate about psychology, I'd recommend the straight PNB program, because it gives you more leniency to take psych courses, and you won't have to worry about meeting bio requirements. If you're into bio a bit, you can still do a minor instead of a full-out degree.

I recommend PNB only too, especially if you're interested in Neuroscience. I had a long talk with Dr. Goldreich (our Neuroscience prof) the other day, and basically, you HAVE to have a good background in Physics, Maths, and programming too! The latter was a surprise, but it's true, most PNB labs end up needing programming, and the earlier you learn it, the better.

With the straight PNB program, you get to have up to four electives which you can invest in taking these sorts of subjects.

EDIT: Not to mention the benefit of the 2XF3/2XD3 courses. I haven't taken them, being in BioPsych, but they're definitely worth taking.

Originally Posted by Faer

I recommend PNB only too, especially if you're interested in Neuroscience. I had a long talk with Dr. Goldreich (our Neuroscience prof) the other day, and basically, you HAVE to have a good background in Physics, Maths, and programming too! The latter was a surprise, but it's true, most PNB labs end up needing programming, and the earlier you learn it, the better.

With the straight PNB program, you get to have up to four electives which you can invest in taking these sorts of subjects.

EDIT: Not to mention the benefit of the 2XF3/2XD3 courses. I haven't taken them, being in BioPsych, but they're definitely worth taking.

sooo basically saying i NEED math and physics. This could be a problem, neither is my strong suit. Looks like I should reconsider this program...

Originally Posted by drpatel

sooo basically saying i NEED math and physics. This could be a problem, neither is my strong suit. Looks like I should reconsider this program...

Dr. Goldreich does sensory processes research which does require a decent amount of math and physics understanding (though it's mainly at a first year math/physics level). There are other fields of neuroscience that don't require as much math/physics and most graduate students pick up this knowledge in thier labs after getting a masters/phd position. Programming, on the other hand is an asset in any lab in almost any field, if you're planning to do a graduate work at all knowing how to program is a great way to set yourself apart from other applicants.

You will need Stats, anyhow. And Maths and Physics...well, especially the former, that's the impression I got from what he said for any Neuro lab, but yeah, he probably might have been talking relevant to his own.

(tl;dr: Listen to Tailsnake).