The Neuroscience Department currently offers only graduate training. Its graduate program was established in 2014 as one of the first interdisciplinary neuroscience graduate programs in the nation. Participating faculty members have primary affiliations in Neuroscience, Psychology, Molecular Biology & Genetics, Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Interior Architecture and Environmental Design, Economics, Computer Engineering, and other related departments. Since its inception, the program has been constantly growing, with further expansions planned.
Our philosophy is to admit students from all relevant backgrounds and train them in a broad range of neuroscientific areas, from cellular and molecular neuroscience to neurological disorders and computational modeling. Although the program is relatively young, its graduates have already achieved international success and obtained academic and industrial positions at prominent international and national institutes.
The department’s research resources include a high-field MR scanner (National Magnetic Resonance Research Center, UMRAM), modern animal facilities and labs (Aysel Sabuncu Brain Research Center, ASBAM), Electroencephalography (EEG) labs, and fully equipped human behavioral testing labs. Our faculty has an excellent track record of research output and securing external funding, which allows the department to sustain and continuously expand the research infrastructure.
We accept applications for Master of Science (MS, with thesis) and Ph.D. degrees (after a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree). Currently, we have students with backgrounds in psychology, biology, various fields of engineering and physical sciences, and medical sciences. Students are assigned to a thesis advisor as they are admitted to the program, which allows them to start working on a research project as soon as they start their graduate training. The MS and PhD programs each have two required courses, and the remaining curriculum is composed of elective courses. This way, the students are exposed to different interdisciplinary topics of neuroscience while deeply focusing on a research topic with their thesis advisor. We strive to train our students to be ready for their next position, either in academia or in industry. Industrial areas where our students are sought include research and development in pharmaceutical companies, artificial intelligence and robotics, brain-machine interface, and any other field where measuring human and animal neuronal and behavioral responses is critical.
If you are interested in understanding the brain and the nervous system and how their functioning gives rise to behavior and all mental processes with an interdisciplinary perspective, Bilkent Neuroscience Graduate Program could be the right place for you. Your training will prepare you to do further basic scientific research or apply your knowledge to, for example, seeking solutions to mental health problems or developing new emerging neurotechnologies.