Certificate in Neurotechnology Innovation
Offered by: Faculty of Science
Coordinator: Dr. Aaron Newman, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience (aaron.newman@dal.ca)
Overview Neurotechnology is an area of research and application involving technologies that measure and/or modulate brain function. Technologies include hardware, software, and drugs, and have applications in several areas including clinical diagnosis and treatment, health promotion and maintenance (including cognitive health), entertainment, and forensics. The undergraduate certificate in Neurotechnology Innovation is designed to provide foundational knowledge in this multi-disciplinary area. The certificate will also provide an understanding of how neurotechnologies can be translated into applications that are available to patients and consumers - through training in innovation, design, and commercialization. The Neurotechnology Innovation certificate provides students with knowledge in:
- Basic neuroscience
- Neurotechnology
- Clinical and cognitive neuroscience
- Computer science
- Entrepreneurship
- Innovation and product design
- Intellectual property
Eligibility The Certificate is oriented toward undergraduate students majoring in Neuroscience, but is open to students in other programs. Students from outside the Faculty of Science (Arts & Social Sciences, Computer Science, Engineering, Management) are welcome, but should consult with an advisor from their home program prior to enrolling.
Admission To enrol in the Certificate in Neurotechnology Innovation, students must declare the certificate through Dal Online (https://dalonline.dal.ca > Web for Students > Admissions > Declare Major/Minor/Certificate).
To graduate with the Certificate, students must apply to Graduate with a Certificate at the time they apply to graduate from their degree program.
Certificate Requirements
The certificate requires completion of 18 credit hours of coursework, in addition to the prerequisites that any of the required courses have. The certificate will be awarded based on successful completion of all of the student's degree requirements, as well as the following courses required for the certificate. Students should consult the University Calendar and departmental requirements for their major regarding the limitations that may be imposed upon the number of credit hours taken outside of the Faculty in which they are majoring, as well as prerequisites for the courses required for the certificate
1. Successful completion of courses from each of the three following sections, as detailed below (or courses deemed equivalent by the Certificate Coordinator):
(a) NESC 2470.03 Systems Neuroscience or
PSYO 2770.03 Brain and Behaviour
(b) At least one of
NESC 3505.03/PSYO 3505.03 Neural Data Science
CSCI 1105.03 Introduction to Programming
CSCI 1110.03 Introduction to Computer Science
CSCI 2202.03 Introduction to Programming with Applications for Scientists
CSCI 2203.03 Data Science for Everyone
PHYC 2050.03 Computer Simulation in Science
(c) SCIE 4701.03.03 and SCIE 4702 Applied Innovation in Science I and II
2. Completion of at least three credit hours (one course) from each of the two topic areas listed below. Courses used to satisfy the requirements below cannot also be used to satisfy Requirement 1 above. Note that many of these courses have additional prerequisites; students are responsible for identifying and fulfilling any such prerequisites and/or obtaining special permission from the instructor.
(a) Neuroscience/Neurotechnology
PHYC 2250.03 Physics of Biological and Medical Technology
NESC 3137.03/PSYO 3137.03 Research Methods in Cognitive Neuroscience
NESC 3227.03/PSYO 3227.03 Principles of Human Neuropsychology
NESC 3237.03/PSYO 3237.03 Drugs and Behaviour
NESC 4070.03 Chemical Neurobiology
NESC 4177.03 Theoretical Neuroscience
NESC 4185.03 Synaptic Function and Plasticity
PHAC 3001.03 Pharmacology I
PHAC 4403.03 Systems Pharmacology I
(b) Computer and Data Science
Note that not all courses are available to non-Computer Science majors every year. Please consult with the Faculty of Computer Science regarding enrolment in these courses
NESC 3505.03/PSYO 3505.03 Neural Data Science
CSCI 1107.03 Social Computing
CSCI 1108.03 Experimental Robotics
CSCI 1110.03 Introduction to Computer Science
CSCI 1120.03 Introduction to Computer Systems
CSCI 2110.03 Data Structures and Algorithms
CSCI 2134.03 Software Development
CSCI 2141.03 Intro to Database Systems
CSCI 2202.03 Introduction to Programming with Applications for Scientists
CSCI 2203.03 Data Science for Everyone
CSCI 3141.03 Foundations of Data Science Using R
PHYC 2050.03 Computer Simulation in Science
STAT 2450.03 Introduction to Data Mining Using R
Notes on the Computer Science course options:
- CSCI 1105.03 and 1110.03 are mutually-exclusive options for an introductory computer science course. You should take CSCI 1105.03 if you have no prior computer programming/coding experience, or CSCI 1110.03 if you have previous programming experience (e.g., a past high school or university class in programming, or independent programming experience). Students with some programming experience who are unsure which course to register for, should consult with an advisor in the Computer Science program.
- CSCI 2202.03 Computer Modelling for Scientists and CSCI 2203.03 Data Science for Everyone have no prerequisites, and do not assume prior programming experience. If you choose to take CSCI 2202.03 first, you should not take CSCI 1105.03 after, as the content will be redundant. However, taking both CSCI 2202.03 and CSCI 1110.03 in either order is acceptable.
- Likewise, if you take NESC 3505.03/PSYO 3505.03 first, you should not take CSCI 1105.03 after, as the content will be redundant.