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Neuroscience Graduate Program

The NSP at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is an interdisciplinary program of study and research leading to the doctoral degree.

We offer a rigorous yet flexible program designed to foster the growth of the student through research activities, close interactions with faculty, and exposure to top neuroscientists through our seminar series and attendance at professional meetings.

Neuroscience Program Events Calendar

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Neuroscience News

Cultivating Affective Resilience: Proof-of-Principle Evidence of Translational Benefits From a Novel Cognitive-Emotional Training Intervention

AbstractAvailable evidence highlights the importance of emotion regulation in psychological well-being. However, translation of the beneficial effects of ER from laboratory to real-life remains scarce. Here, we present proof-of-principle evidence from a novel cognitive-emotional...

Beckman’s newest seed project will expand existing AI models into a framework that analyzes neurological aging.

In its fourth year, the research seed grant program at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology will fund one research project beginning in 2026.Members of the team include, from left, Nien-Pei Tsai...

Honey bee larvae can't smell - and that's actually a good thing

BEESEarth.com (Telluride, Colo., July 16) — Gene Robinson, Illinois entomology professor and executive director and CEO of the Discovery Partners Institute, led a study seeking to understand if a young bee never has to find its own food, does it still need to smell the world around it? “Larval...

Artificial Intelligence: Enabling More Sustainable Labs

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCETechnology Networks (with audio; Suffolk, England, May 6) — Jimeng Sun, a computer science professor at the U. of I., used training data from over 8,000 past trials to predict the outcome of more than 3,400 recent drug studies in a prediction model. “All this...

Steve Maren, Director, Beckman Institute

The surprising scientific benefits behind memory manipulation

Today we know that our brains re-write our memories each time we recall them, but what if we could control that process? We're exploring the science of memory manipulation, which could transform treatments for Alzheimer's, PTSD, and more. To answer our questions, KCBS Radio news anchor Steve Scott...

Researchers receive $2.7M NIH grant to investigate effects of phthalate exposure on neurodevelopment

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Faculty Spotlight

Circadian Biologist, Megan Mahoney

How would you describe your background? (I.E. where you are from? How did you first get interested in your area of research? Etc.) I always wanted to do biology. I always found that interesting, I took AP biology in high school and said, “This is what I want to major in.” Even though I went to two different undergrads, I was always a biology major. I guess I would say I say that my Ph.D. and post-docs were all in hormones and biological rhythms. I entered graduate school to do reproduction, but I had a lab that also did biological rhythms, which I knew nothing about. So that’s the area I’ve...

Stephanie Matt, Research Assistant Professor, Drexel University

Alumni Spotlight

Alumna Spotlight: Stephanie Matt

Stephanie Matt, Class of 2018by Virginia WrightAs of July 2023, Stephanie Matt is a Research Assistant Professor at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After five years of working as a postdoctoral researcher for Drexel, she recently won an NIH Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K01) to investigate the role of antidepressants in HIV infection and inflammation in myeloid cells such as macrophages and microglia. Receiving this grant provided not only mentored support for her research career but also a place within Drexel University faculty. “It took...

Publication Spotlight

Principles for the design of multicellular engineered living systems

Abstract Remarkable progress in bioengineering over the past two decades has enabled the formulation of fundamental design principles for a variety of medical and non-medical applications. These advancements have laid the foundation for building multicellular engineered living systems (M-CELS) from biological parts, forming functional modules integrated into living machines. These cognizant design principles for living systems encompass novel genetic circuit manipulation, self-assembly, cell-cell/matrix communication, and artificial tissues/organs enabled through systems biology,...

South Quad - McFarland Carillon Memorial Bell Tower

Land Acknowledgement

As a land-grant institution, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has a responsibility to acknowledge the historical context in which it exists. We are currently on the lands of the Peoria, Kaskaskia, Peankashaw, Wea, Miami, Mascoutin, Odawa, Sauk, Mesquaki, Kickapoo, Potawatomi, Ojibwe, and Chickasaw Nations. It is necessary for us to acknowledge these Native Nations and for us to work with them as we move forward as an institution with Native peoples at the core of our efforts.

More about the practice of land acknowledgements at the University of Illinois.