Contact:
Dona Chikaraishi, Ph.D.
Department of Neurobiology
Duke University Medical Center
Box 3209
Durham, NC
27710
Telephone: (919)
681-4243
Fax: (919) 684-4431
E-Mail: donam@neuro.duke.edu
WWW:
http://neurobiology.mc.duke.edu
Degrees Or Programs Offered: Neurobiology
Program Established: 1989
Total Number of Faculty: 67
Total Number of Students:
45
US Citizens: 53%
Female:
56%
U.S. Underrepresented Minorities: 11%
African American/Black: 7%
Total Number of Graduates in the Last Five
Years: 27
Number of Faculty who have Supervised Graduate
Student Thesis Projects: 21
Average Number of Years to
Complete Program: 6.1 years
Program Description:
TThe Department of Neurobiology offers a program of graduate study leading to a Ph.D. degree in neurobiology. The goal is to train scientists for academic positions in research-oriented institutions. Major strengths of the program include an interdisciplinary faculty, broad collaboration with other departments and programs, and a curriculum that can be as minimal or as expansive as suits a student's needs.
The program is designed to provide students with a thorough understanding of cellular, molecular, systems, cognitive, and developmental neurobiology--areas all well represented by the neurobiology faculty. Graduate training is interdisciplinary and interactive. Students complete a core curriculum covering the major concepts of contemporary neurobiology. But they are generally free to pursue--with the help and counsel of faculty advisors--a course of study tailored to their needs, backgrounds, and individual interests.
There are many extra-curricular opportunities for informal training: The department holds an annual retreat--two days of talks, poster sessions, and social time. There are weekly seminars of visiting speakers, faculty speakers, and student speakers. Students lunch frequently with visiting speakers. Clubs, with members from several area universities, address specific research interests. And most students attend the SFN annual meeting.
Duke's technical facilities for neuroscience are among the best in the nation. They include the new Center for Neuroengineering, the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, and the new Center for Translational Neuroscience.
The program was founded in 1989, has reached a current enrollment of forty-five students, and graduates about five students a year. Fifty-six students have completed the Ph.D. degree. Most are doing postdoctoral fellowships; two are completing medical residencies; four are in medical school or other graduate programs, and sixteen have accepted faculty positions.
Admission Requirements:
We are seeking applicants who have a strong undergraduate background in biology, psychology, and the physical sciences. Scores on the general test of the Graduate Record Examination are required of all applicants. No subject test is requrired. TOEFL scores are required of international applicants. We do not have a cut-off point for either the grade point average or the GRE scores, but prospective applicants might find statistics on our entering students instructive. Program statistics detailing aggregate GPA and GRE scores of entering classes can be found on our web site at http://neurobiology.mc.duke.edu/graduate/stats.html.
Grades and GREs are only two factors taken into consideration in the review for admission. Letters of evaluation and the applicant's statement of research interests are extremely important. We receive about 150 applications each year; we offer admission to fifteen to twenty applicants, and five to eight new students enter the program each fall.
We admit students only in the fall semester.
How or Where to Apply: Submit applications for admission through the Duke University Graduate School. All applications must be submitted online. The admissions application web site: http://www.gradschool.duke.edu/admissions/apply_online.html. The deadline for submission of applications for admission in fall 2005 is December 31, 2004. The application fee is $75, $65 for applications postmarked prior to December 1. We begin review of applications in early December and encourage applicants to complete the application by the December 1 date if possible.
Annual Tuition and Fees Costs:
Tuition and fees for 2006-2007
Fees: $7,760
Health insurance: $1,750
Tuition: $28,080
Approximate Cost of Living Per Year: $18,000
Housing Availability and Costs per Year: On campus apartments for graduate students cost about $500 per person per month. There is ample housing in the retail market close to campus--rooms, houses, apartments--at varying prices. Many reasonably priced options are available close to campus.
Day-Care Facilities Availability and Costs Per Month: The university provides day care services on campus and also at one off-campus location. http://www.hr.duke.edu/dcc/index.thml The university Human Resources office also maintains a list of community day care providers. The Graduate School maintains a fund from which grants are made to individual graduate students to help defray child-care expenses.
Stipend/Assistantships and Financial Assistance:
The package for first-year students for the 2006-2007 academic year totals $61,590:
Stipend: $24,000 ($2,000 per month)
Fees: $7,760
Health insurance: $1,750
Tuition: $28,080
How To Apply For Stipends And Financial
Assistance:
The application for admission serves also as the application for the financial award. All candidates accepted into the program are offered the full package of financial aid outlined above.
We encourage applicants, however, to apply for other fellowships. Information on some fellowships can be found on our web site: http://neurobiology.mc.duke.edu/graduate/admissions.html
Last revised September 2004
http://www.andp.org/programs/graduate/unitedstates/northcaro/duke-neurobio.htm
Directory of Neuroscience Training Programs
© 2007 Association of Neuroscience Departments and Programs
89G
