neuroscience phd programs harvard

Neuroscience

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Neuroscience is an area of study within the Division of Medical Sciences, an administrative unit based at Harvard Medical School that coordinates biomedical PhD activities at the Longwood Medical Area. Students who study in neuroscience receive a PhD in neurobiology. Prospective students apply through the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (Harvard Griffin GSAS). In the online application, select  “Division of Medical Sciences” as your program choice and select "Neuroscience" in the area of study menu.

Neuroscience is one of the programs in the Harvard Integrated Life Sciences that facilitates collaboration and cross-disciplinary research. Visit HILS for additional  application instructions .

This interdisciplinary program includes over 150 faculty members from several hospitals and campuses in the Boston area with a variety of backgrounds in all areas of neuroscience. You will receive a solid core foundation and will then be able to focus on the area that interests you most with specialized training.

You will have access to an impressive array of resources, including state-of-the-art labs, high-resolution microscopy facilities, animal cores, and an instrumentation core that can design custom behavioral chambers and other experimental apparatuses. You will have the opportunity to engage with the broader neuroscience community in several ways, including through the Harvard Brain Science Initiative (HBI), a cross-schools initiative among neuroscientists in the University and its affiliated hospitals.

Students are working on various projects such as studying how neural circuits generate behavior through the use of in vivo imaging to study neurons in awake, behaving animals; the development of the nervous system; the ways in which genes and molecules regulate neural function; and the electrical properties of neurons.

Graduates of the program have secured faculty positions at institutions such as Stanford University, Holy Cross University, Rutgers University, and Harvard University. Others have established careers with leading organizations such as Biogen, Google, and McKinsey & Company. 

Personal Statement

Standardized tests.

GRE General: Not Accepted GRE Subject: Not Accepted iBT TOEFL minimum score: 100 IELTS minimum score: 7

See list of Neuroscience faculty

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Questions about the program.

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This subreddit is for anyone who is going through the process of getting into graduate school, and for those who've been there and have advice to give.

My Neuroscience PhD Application Experience or: How I (Almost) Compensated for a Bad GPA

Thanks to u/AlzScience for posting about her neuroscience application process; I posted my stats in the thread but I thought I'd wait a bit and post mines here for all the early-birds looking into applying to neuro grad programs for next cycle. This post will be most helpful for those, like me, with low undergrad GPA's that are looking to find ways to enter schools for neuroscience. The short of it is that I followed the guide on the sidebar but, unfortunately, even that wasn't enough (for my field, specifically).

I'll try to include as much detail as possible and I'm willing to share all my materials: application essays, transcripts, emails to potential PI's, etc if you PM me. Disclaimer: I am a sample size of 1 (and have only applied once) and I probably over-learned many things in the process.

Also, my results seem to be the result of a neuroscience Ph.D. in the U.S. at top-20 program specific problem so extrapolate with a grain of salt.

Stats at Undergrad Graduation

GPA: 3.13 in Math (2.8 in major) and Biochemistry (2.9 in major)

GRE: 167/163/6.0 V/Q/W 98th/83rd/99th percentiles

School: top-200 liberal arts college with an 88% acceptance rate in the PNW

3 years undergraduate research experience; 2 summer REU's at R1's

Asian-american male

Interested in computational neuroscience

Awards: small travel awards

LoR's: one great one from PI, two mediocre from academic professors

Posters/Pubs: One 2nd author SfN poster, one 3rd author submitted manuscript

Networking: none but I wasn't planning on applying anyways

Additional stats at time of application (3.5 years later)

GPA: 3.7 in an MS in Applied Math (80% done)

School: top-10 worldwide public university

0.5 years tech at R1; 3 years tech at leading neuroscience research institution

LoR's: One great one from undergrad PI and now also manager (neither well-known); one good joint letter from PI's

Posters/Pubs: 3 published (3rd author small journal IF of 4.0; large # author mid-author eNeuro and eLife); 2 manuscripts submitted (large author # mid-author Nature (yes, Nature Nature), 2nd-author PLOS ONE); 2 manuscripts in prep (1st and 3rd); four posters at SfN (one first, one third, two mid-author)

Networking: emailed 2-4 PI's at the top 10 schools I wanted and corresponded with a dozen; skyped around 4 PI's and met 8 PI's at SfN in person.

Schools applied to

Applied: UW, UO, UCSF, UCSD, Stanford, Columbia, NYU, CMU/Pitt CNBC, Princeton, Stony Brook, BU GPN, MIT, Harvard

Interviewed: UO, Stony Brook, CMU Biological Sciences, BU GPN

Rejected after waitlist: CMU Biological Sciences, BU GPN

Accepted: UO (with $20k fellowship), Stony Brook (with $15k fellowship), BU BBC

Attending: BU BBC

Quite shocked to be perfectly honest. I had spoken with several neuroscientists that had served as PI's years ago and some that had just graduated their PhD a year or two ago and some even served on admissions committees; all of them said that, despite my low undergrad GPA, I'd be fine and I should be getting into top-tens. Even people here said the same (see my post history). I thought I had truly done enough to be getting easily into top schools despite my GPA but I don't feel like I came close; the only other things I was missing were a first-authorship or an LoR or two from a big name. I love the research project/program I am about to enter (BU BBC is direct admit to the professor) but I had far less options than I anticipated. You might also notice that I was interviewed at a program I never applied to and I was admitted to a program I neither applied to nor interviewed at: one professor wanted me enough at CMU to swing me into interviewing at CMU Bio a month after the deadline (but I was ultimately rejected) and another wanted me enough at BU that they admitted me to another program after getting waitlisted at GPN.

What I would've changed

Applied to more biology programs : as far as I could tell, top neuro programs were getting >500 apps each and admitting around 20 (for class sizes around 10) whereas bio programs were far less selective. Friends were interviewing at top-50 neuro programs and at the same time top-10 bio programs.

Networked even more : Both CMU and BU I was "golden buzzered" into and interview or acceptance because there was one PI who wanted me an exceptional amount. Both I had met in-person and chatted about how I'd fit into their lab. I should've had at least one of these people at every top-choice but this is understandably a tall order and up to luck.

Not been so specific in my interests : My feedback for CMU and BU GPN was that I had interests that were too specific and they felt they could not accommodate my interests. I thought it advantageous to talk extensively about a specific project in mind and how I would structure it but I think the PI's didn't "get it" and thought I wasn't a good fit. I was too focused on neuroscience for CMU Biological Sciences (which I resent because they're starting a neuroscience institute this year and it was my top school among everywhere I applied).

Talked about my undergrad GPA and sleep disorder : I thought it was a bit of a cop-out to talk about how I was diagnosed with a sleep disorder (Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder) which made it difficult to focus in my 8 a.m to noon science/math classes (my major had all their classes in this time frame) or talked about my brief depression after losing a best friend in a car crash. Maybe talking about these wouldn't have mattered but I think I should've at least mentioned it.

Final Thoughts

The application process turned my whole sense of self-worth and my outlook on academia upside-down. I hope I'm wrong about this but I came to a terrible realization throughout: it really doesn't matter what you look like on paper if you don't know the right people. When graduate programs have over 500 applications each, they become reliant on things like undergrad GPA for first-pass filtering and weigh less things that take time to evaluate like statements of purpose or content of letters of rec (but not who is writing them). By most readings, my application was stellar sans my undergrad GPA and I was told as much by literally everyone I spoke to but it seems that there's been a paradigm shift in the neuroscience application process in that everyone looks perfect; now, the only way to stand out is to have letter writers that are part of the "in-crowd" of neuroscientists. I say this because, of the friends I have that got into every top school, they had letter-writers that were top- to just-below-top- neuroscientists in the field (and some of them had sub-3.5 GPA's) e.g. Anne Churchland, Adrienne Fairhall, Nancy Kanwisher, Sam Gershman, etc. People who are notable PI's at R1's or Group Leaders at research institutes. Also, all of my friends who got into top-schools had any publications but yet I had three published and two in review which signals to me that it's really not important (unless you have a first-author) as a differentiator. I think that my undergrad GPA was not outweighed by my MS GPA largely.

Please let me know if you have any questions! Being honest, the few months between early December and mid-April were some of the worst of my life (second only to the death of a close friend) and if I can help someone else avoid some of the pain of this process, it will have been (somewhat more) worth it.

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• Universities /

Harvard Neuroscience PhD 2024: Program, Acceptance Rate, Requirements and Stipend

• Updated on  
• Feb 5, 2024

If you are interested in pursuing a PhD in neuroscience at one of the world’s leading institutions, you may want to consider applying to the Harvard PhD Program in Neuroscience (PiN). PiN is a full-time lab-based program that offers comprehensive and interdisciplinary training in neuroscience. It also provides students with opportunities to work with renowned faculty, access state-of-the-art facilities, and join a diverse and supportive community of peers and mentors. In this blog, we will give you an overview of the Harvard Neuroscience PhD program, its acceptance rate, its requirements, and its stipend for the academic year 2024. 

This Blog Includes:

Why pursue harvard neuroscience phd program, harvard neuroscience phd: acceptance rate, harvard neuroscience phd: stipend, academic requirements, english language requirements, additional requirements , documents required.

Here are some of the reasons why you might want to pursue this program:

• Learn from world-renowned faculty in diverse research areas.
• Rigorous curriculum with an interdisciplinary approach.
• Unmatched breadth of research opportunities in cutting-edge labs.
• Collaborative research environment with excellent facilities.
• Dedicated career support and strong alumni network.
• Location advantage in Boston’s scientific community.
• Diverse and stimulating learning environment.
• Prestigious experience with a transformative impact on your career.

Although the Harvard Neuroscience PhD program doesn’t publicly reveal its acceptance rate, it’s expected to be around 9% . This estimate is based on the number of applicants and admitted students reported by the program in previous years. After all, PiN does look for applicants who demonstrate academic excellence, research potential, leadership, resilience, and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. For students interested in applying quantitative methods to neuroscience research, the program also offers an optional certificate track in computational neuroscience.

The stipend offered by the Harvard Neuroscience PhD Program is $45,696 ($3,808 per month) . It covers both tuition and living expenses, and is available for all students, regardless of citizenship, who are enrolled and making satisfactory progress toward the PhD degree. 

Students may also receive additional financial support from the university, such as travel allowance, childcare scholarship, parental accommodation, and emergency grants. They can also apply for external grants and fellowships as part of their training.

Harvard Neuroscience PhD: Entry Requirements

Given below are the entry requirements for the Harvard Neuroscience PhD program that aspiring researchers need to fulfil:

• Master’s degree in a relevant field like neuroscience, biology, psychology, or a related discipline.
• A strong undergraduate record with a high GPA (typically 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale) in a relevant field.
• A strong foundation in core sciences like biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics (relevant neuroscience subfields).
• Strong scores GRE General Test (above 320 in Verbal and Quant, above 4.0 in Writing).

• Research Experience
• Letters of Recommendation
• Statement of Purpose
• Updated CV/Resume
• Official academic transcripts

Application Process

The application process for the Harvard Neuroscience PhD program is entirely online and opens annually on 15 July. The deadline for international applicants is 1 December, with earlier submissions encouraged. Here’s an overview of the process:

• Visit the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) online application portal: https://research.fas.harvard.edu/apply-funding  
• Create an account and select the “ Program in Neuroscience (PiN) ” for the PhD program.
• Fill out the application form with the necessary details and documents and pay the application fee of USD 130 (non-refundable).
• Shortlisted applicants are typically invited for interviews (in-person and virtually) in late January or early February.
• The admissions committee carefully reviews all applications and makes final decisions in March.
• Official transcripts
• Standardized test scores (GRE)
• 3 Letters of recommendation
• Statement of purpose
• Additional experience in research and teaching

Ans: The overall acceptance rate for the Harvard Neuroscience PhD program is notoriously low, typically below 10%.

Ans: Yes, the program offers generous financial aid packages, including fellowships, scholarships, and teaching assistantships, that are open to all admitted students, regardless of citizenship.

Ans: The Harvard Neuroscience PhD program has exceptional faculty expertise across a diverse range of subfields. Some particularly strong areas include Molecular and cellular neuroscience, Systems neuroscience, Cognitive and computational neuroscience, and Neuroimaging and computational neuroscience.

So this was all about the Harvard Neuroscience PhD program for international students. Stay tuned to Leverage Edu for more updates on courses and universities to study abroad. Thank you for reading!

Disha Kaira

Disha is an electrical engineer turned writer passionate about bringing a spark (and accuracy) to whatever content she comes across. Whether it's UI/UX Design or writing blogs on abroad education, she relishes every chance to learn and test the limits of her creativity.

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Neuro Admissions

Students seeking admission to the Neuroscience Program must meet the requirements of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. A strong background in cellular and molecular biology, biochemistry, and cellular neuroscience is also recommended.

Prospective applicants are evaluated based on prior grades, three letters of recommendation, and responses to the short essays that are part of the application. Prior research experience is strongly valued but is not required.

The essay prompts for our program are:

• Academic Statement of Purpose (750 words maximum): tell us about your development as a scientist, your research experience, your vision for your professional trajectory, and why this particular program, in this particular location, is the right step for you now.
• Personal Statement (750 works maximum): Anything that can give reviewers a sense of you as a person, and your promise as a member of the Tufts community, belongs here.
• More Information (Optional, 250 words maximum): Our students have many different backgrounds, experiences, identities, interests, and talents that meaningfully inspired them to pursue a career in science. What inspired you?

Please direct specific questions to our Administrative Coordinator,  Shelley Scheier  or to  Leon Reijmers , Program Admissions Director.

GSBS students typically receive  financial aid  that includes full tuition remission, a student stipend and health insurance.

The application is completed online on the GSBS Application Portal .

Information about application deadlines and the application process can be found in the Admissions section of this website.