Undergraduates are welcome and encouraged to attend many of the events regularly hosted by the Department of Neuroscience.

Pizza with Professors 

The Department of Neuroscience hosts three Pizza with Professors events per semester with the express purpose of getting undergraduates and faculty into the same room to chat, eat, and learn more about each other. We often select a theme for a short presentation (e.g., student organizations, all you need to know about grad school, etc.), then open things up for a panel discussion of whatever questions students would like to bring to the table. The dates for these are advertised during the semester on the Department Facebook Page. All students are welcome and encourage to attend, eat free pizza, and get acquainted with their fellow students and department faculty.

UT Brainstorms (Monthly)

Brainstorms is a seminar series presented by the Department of Neuroscience faculty that is open to the public to educate on topics related to neuroscience and connect with the broader community. Presentations and following panel discussions are presented at the lay level and are ideal opportunities for NEU students to learn more about important topics in our field while connecting with both the faculty and the public.  Visit the UTBrainstorms website for schedule and lecture topics.

Neuroscience Seminar Series (Weekly, Mondays in NHB 1.720)

Every week the Department of Neuroscience hosts an invited guest from another university or research institute to give a seminar on their current work. These guest speakers are luminaries in their fields. We encourage undergraduates to monitor the schedule (insert link) and attend seminars as often as possible. While the talks are often technically detailed, you’ll find that you quickly become adept at understanding how scientific seminars are presented and what the key takeaway points are. It is also a great chance to learn more about topics and techniques that interest you or that you hadn’t been exposed to before, about the cutting edge research going on across the spectrum of neuroscience, and about the work being done in different institutions and graduate programs. And since most of the neuroscience faculty are in attendance, it is a great time to meet and mingle with the people teaching courses and running labs in your home department. See the Neuroreporter calendar for information.

INS Dialogues (Monthly,  Typically Last Friday of the month at 3pm NHB 1.720)

Each month, our Ph.D. program the Institute for Neuroscience(link) hosts a seminar presented jointly by one senior graduate student and one faculty member. Speakers discuss ongoing research projects and future directions. Attending these seminars is an ideal way for undergraduates to get to know more about the cutting edge research going on in their own department, and get to know the graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty working in UT neuroscience labs. See the Neuroreporter calendar for information.

Journal Clubs (Weekly or Biweekly)

Many labs or lab groups hold regular journal clubs and lab meetings where the newest publications in the field are dissected and discussed. Attending these journal clubs can be an invaluable experience for undergraduates. If you’re interested in research, check with faculty to see if there are journal clubs or lab meetings that might be useful for you.

Other Seminar Series

Many UT departments and centers host regular seminar series that would be of interest to neuroscience students. Check the calendars below, or talk with faculty to find out if there are some in your specific area of interest.

Behavioral Neuroscience seminar series

Center for Perceptual Systems Colloquium seminar series

Psychology department seminar series