Student who wish to pursue a MSc in Neuroscience in the Neuroeconomics Laboratory can through the University of Victoria's graduate program in Neuroscience. CLICK HERE for program information.
Important Information for Prospective Students:
1. Contact Dr. Krigolson to see if he is currently looking for new students. There is a maximum effective capacity of supervision, as such, Dr. Krigolson may not be taking on new students at any given time.
2. If Dr. Krigolson is taking in students, apply to the program. CLICK HERE for information on the application process.
3. Secure Funding. To be accepted into the Neuroscience Program you need to have $20,000 CDN in funding secured. Students typically secure their own funding from national competitions (NSERC, CIHR) or from another external source. Occasionally, the laboratory will have grant paid graduate positions - but these are rare! It is your responsibility to apply for and pursue external funding. Securing external funding is the easiest way to be accepted into graduate school, the Neuroscience Program, and the Krigolson Lab. Again, we emphasize IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to apply for and secure funding for Graduate School.
The MSc in Neuroscience Course Program
In the first year of the MSc in Neuroscience program students take four courses, NRSC 500, NRSC 501B, NRSC 595, and an ELECTIVE - typically EPHE 591. In the second year of the program, students take NRSC 502B and NRSC 599. In terms of semester progression:
Fall, Year One: NRSC 500, NRSC 501B, NRSC 595
Spring, Year One: NRSC 500, NRSC 501B, EPHE 591
Summer, Year One: NRSC 599
Fall, Year Two: NRSC 502B, NRSC 599
Spring, Year Two: NRSC 502B, NRSC 599
Summer, Year Two: NRSC 599
A note on tuition. Tuition fees are approximately $2500 for the fall semester and $2000 for the spring and summer semesters for each year.
YEAR ONE
NRSC 500 (3.0 Units) A year long course covering the basics. The course is team taught by various instructors in the Neuroscience program. The first semester is devoted to Cellular Neuroscience, the second to Systems Neuroscience. Typically, the course meets once a week from 8:30 to 11:20 am on Tuesdays.
NRSC 501B (1.5 Units) A weekly journal club / seminar for Cognitive Neuroscience (CLICK HERE for details). Students have a choice of NRSC 501A or NRSC 501B but we recommend NRSC 501B. For NRSC 501B students attend the weekly Cognitive Seminar on Fridays from 3:00pm to 4:20pm and are required to present once during the calendar year to the group. Note, this course runs through both the Fall and Spring semesters.
NRSC 595 (1.5 Units) Thesis Preparation. Essentially, this is a shell course as there is no actual class - you meet with your supervisor to prepare for your thesis proposal on a weekly basis (see below for details about Theses ).
ELECTIVE (1.5 Units) In your elective slot Dr. Krigolson requires you take a statistics course - there are no exceptions to this rule. We recommend you take EPHE 591 (1.5), a directed studies statistics course with Dr. Krigolson. This course would take the form of weekly meetings with problems being assigned for you to work through on your own. NOTE, although this course is listed to only last one semester it typically takes students a full year to complete the course requirements. Your other choices for a statistics course to fulfill your elective requirement would be either be PSYC 532, PSYC 533, PSYC 534, or PSYC 537.
YEAR TWO
NRSC 502B (1.5 Units). Neuroscience students are required to be enrolled in the journal club course series for both years of their program. As such, in the their second year students can continue to attend the weekly Cognitive Seminar (i.e., 501B) or at their discretion can switch and attend 502A, Cellular Neuroscience. Dr. Krigolson recommends you take 502B. As with 501B, 502B meets Fridays from 3:00pm to 4:20pm. Note, this course runs through both the Fall and Spring semesters.
NRSC 599 (As need, typically 9.0 to 12.0 Units). Thesis. Upon completion of NRSC 595 students immediately move into NRSC 599. For example, if your thesis proposal was in the Spring of your first year you would move into NRSC 599 in the summer semester to maintain full time status. As with NRSC 595, there is no assigned class time for NRSC 599 - you meet with supervisor as needed to complete your thesis.
THESIS. (CLICK HERE TO SEE A SAMPLE THESIS) Students in the MSc program in Neuroscience are expected to complete a research thesis. Essentially, a thesis is a large multi-experiment research project during which you become an expert with regard to a specific research question. For example, a thesis topic might be "The impact on reward certainty on reward processing within the medial-frontal cortex". During the initial phase of your thesis work you develop your research question and plan your research studies. Typically, students in Dr. Krigolson's laboratory students conduct two related research studies for a thesis project. In the past, students have completed a single research study combined with a computational modelling project in rare instances a single research project if the project involved the collection of longitudinal data or multiple experimental groups. One the project is planned, students write a thesis proposal. The thesis proposal is a document with two parts - a literature review that frames the proposed thesis project and a methods section that outlines the experiments. Typically, the last section of the thesis proposal outlines the predictions that you have and potential results. Following the generation of this document, students have a proposal meeting during which they give a 15-25 minute presentation of their idea and then answer questions about the proposal from the thesis committee. The thesis committee is the group that evaluates the student's work and typically consists of Dr. Krigolson and two other faculty members with knowledge in the area of the proposed research. If the proposal is unsuccessful, students need to address the committee's concerns and attempt the proposal again. After a successful proposal, students begin to collect their thesis data. When data collection and analysis is completed, students finish their written thesis. Essentially, students write up a results section and discussion for each of the experiments and then add in a general discussion of the overall conclusions. As such, a full thesis would include (in order): Title Page, Dedications, Abstract, General Introduction, Experiment One: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Experiment Two: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, General Discussion, Conclusions, References, Tables, Figures. One the written document is completed it is submitted "for defence" and a date is set to defend the thesis. The student again gives a 15-25 minute presentation, this time a summary of the overall work and findings. The key part of the defence is the oral questioning during which the student must demonstrate their knowledge of their work and expertise in their research area. Thesis grades at this point are either: Accepted, Accepted with Minor Revisions, Accepted with Major Revisions, Redo, or Fail. Theses that are Accepted or Accepted with Minor Revisions reflect a pass and the student graduates shortly thereafter. With a grade of Accepted with Major Revisions the student is typically being asked to collect more data and/or reanalyze the data and defend their work again. A Redo grade typically means that the student has not demonstrated the level of knowledge and/or expertise necessary to graduate and is given time to fix this issue and go through the thesis defence process again. A Fail grade indicates that the student is not worthy of being awarded a MSc in Neuroscience. NOTE: It is rare that students do poorly in the thesis defence as Dr. Krigolson (or any other supervisor) would not let you defend if he did not think you were ready!
Important Information for Prospective Students:
1. Contact Dr. Krigolson to see if he is currently looking for new students. There is a maximum effective capacity of supervision, as such, Dr. Krigolson may not be taking on new students at any given time.
2. If Dr. Krigolson is taking in students, apply to the program. CLICK HERE for information on the application process.
3. Secure Funding. To be accepted into the Neuroscience Program you need to have $20,000 CDN in funding secured. Students typically secure their own funding from national competitions (NSERC, CIHR) or from another external source. Occasionally, the laboratory will have grant paid graduate positions - but these are rare! It is your responsibility to apply for and pursue external funding. Securing external funding is the easiest way to be accepted into graduate school, the Neuroscience Program, and the Krigolson Lab. Again, we emphasize IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to apply for and secure funding for Graduate School.
The MSc in Neuroscience Course Program
In the first year of the MSc in Neuroscience program students take four courses, NRSC 500, NRSC 501B, NRSC 595, and an ELECTIVE - typically EPHE 591. In the second year of the program, students take NRSC 502B and NRSC 599. In terms of semester progression:
Fall, Year One: NRSC 500, NRSC 501B, NRSC 595
Spring, Year One: NRSC 500, NRSC 501B, EPHE 591
Summer, Year One: NRSC 599
Fall, Year Two: NRSC 502B, NRSC 599
Spring, Year Two: NRSC 502B, NRSC 599
Summer, Year Two: NRSC 599
A note on tuition. Tuition fees are approximately $2500 for the fall semester and $2000 for the spring and summer semesters for each year.
YEAR ONE
NRSC 500 (3.0 Units) A year long course covering the basics. The course is team taught by various instructors in the Neuroscience program. The first semester is devoted to Cellular Neuroscience, the second to Systems Neuroscience. Typically, the course meets once a week from 8:30 to 11:20 am on Tuesdays.
NRSC 501B (1.5 Units) A weekly journal club / seminar for Cognitive Neuroscience (CLICK HERE for details). Students have a choice of NRSC 501A or NRSC 501B but we recommend NRSC 501B. For NRSC 501B students attend the weekly Cognitive Seminar on Fridays from 3:00pm to 4:20pm and are required to present once during the calendar year to the group. Note, this course runs through both the Fall and Spring semesters.
NRSC 595 (1.5 Units) Thesis Preparation. Essentially, this is a shell course as there is no actual class - you meet with your supervisor to prepare for your thesis proposal on a weekly basis (see below for details about Theses ).
ELECTIVE (1.5 Units) In your elective slot Dr. Krigolson requires you take a statistics course - there are no exceptions to this rule. We recommend you take EPHE 591 (1.5), a directed studies statistics course with Dr. Krigolson. This course would take the form of weekly meetings with problems being assigned for you to work through on your own. NOTE, although this course is listed to only last one semester it typically takes students a full year to complete the course requirements. Your other choices for a statistics course to fulfill your elective requirement would be either be PSYC 532, PSYC 533, PSYC 534, or PSYC 537.
YEAR TWO
NRSC 502B (1.5 Units). Neuroscience students are required to be enrolled in the journal club course series for both years of their program. As such, in the their second year students can continue to attend the weekly Cognitive Seminar (i.e., 501B) or at their discretion can switch and attend 502A, Cellular Neuroscience. Dr. Krigolson recommends you take 502B. As with 501B, 502B meets Fridays from 3:00pm to 4:20pm. Note, this course runs through both the Fall and Spring semesters.
NRSC 599 (As need, typically 9.0 to 12.0 Units). Thesis. Upon completion of NRSC 595 students immediately move into NRSC 599. For example, if your thesis proposal was in the Spring of your first year you would move into NRSC 599 in the summer semester to maintain full time status. As with NRSC 595, there is no assigned class time for NRSC 599 - you meet with supervisor as needed to complete your thesis.
THESIS. (CLICK HERE TO SEE A SAMPLE THESIS) Students in the MSc program in Neuroscience are expected to complete a research thesis. Essentially, a thesis is a large multi-experiment research project during which you become an expert with regard to a specific research question. For example, a thesis topic might be "The impact on reward certainty on reward processing within the medial-frontal cortex". During the initial phase of your thesis work you develop your research question and plan your research studies. Typically, students in Dr. Krigolson's laboratory students conduct two related research studies for a thesis project. In the past, students have completed a single research study combined with a computational modelling project in rare instances a single research project if the project involved the collection of longitudinal data or multiple experimental groups. One the project is planned, students write a thesis proposal. The thesis proposal is a document with two parts - a literature review that frames the proposed thesis project and a methods section that outlines the experiments. Typically, the last section of the thesis proposal outlines the predictions that you have and potential results. Following the generation of this document, students have a proposal meeting during which they give a 15-25 minute presentation of their idea and then answer questions about the proposal from the thesis committee. The thesis committee is the group that evaluates the student's work and typically consists of Dr. Krigolson and two other faculty members with knowledge in the area of the proposed research. If the proposal is unsuccessful, students need to address the committee's concerns and attempt the proposal again. After a successful proposal, students begin to collect their thesis data. When data collection and analysis is completed, students finish their written thesis. Essentially, students write up a results section and discussion for each of the experiments and then add in a general discussion of the overall conclusions. As such, a full thesis would include (in order): Title Page, Dedications, Abstract, General Introduction, Experiment One: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Experiment Two: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, General Discussion, Conclusions, References, Tables, Figures. One the written document is completed it is submitted "for defence" and a date is set to defend the thesis. The student again gives a 15-25 minute presentation, this time a summary of the overall work and findings. The key part of the defence is the oral questioning during which the student must demonstrate their knowledge of their work and expertise in their research area. Thesis grades at this point are either: Accepted, Accepted with Minor Revisions, Accepted with Major Revisions, Redo, or Fail. Theses that are Accepted or Accepted with Minor Revisions reflect a pass and the student graduates shortly thereafter. With a grade of Accepted with Major Revisions the student is typically being asked to collect more data and/or reanalyze the data and defend their work again. A Redo grade typically means that the student has not demonstrated the level of knowledge and/or expertise necessary to graduate and is given time to fix this issue and go through the thesis defence process again. A Fail grade indicates that the student is not worthy of being awarded a MSc in Neuroscience. NOTE: It is rare that students do poorly in the thesis defence as Dr. Krigolson (or any other supervisor) would not let you defend if he did not think you were ready!
Information for Prospective Psychology and Kinesiology Honours Students
If you are a UVic Psychology student interested in doing a Honours degree with Dr. Krigolson contact him via email and set up a meeting.
If you are a UVic Kinesiology student interested in doing an Honours degree with Dr. Krigolson, take a look at the recommended sequence of required courses presented below to see which courses you must take to receive your Honours degree. Dr. Krigolson only takes Honours students who have a year or more experience in the lab as neuroimaging methodology is too difficult to learn in a single year. Also note that Dr.Krigolson offers Directed Studies opportunities (EPHE 494) for prospective honours students - see more on this below. If you are not yet in the Kinesiology program but are interested in joining, CLICK HERE to see the Kinesiology admission requirements.
Honours students are in a 61.5 unit degree program as opposed to a 60.0 unit degree program. While EPHE 499 (Honour's Thesis) is listed as 3.0 units, only 1.5 of those 3.0 units count as kinesiology electives - the other 1.5 units are required over and above the non-Honours 60.0 unit requirement. For clarity, we have compiled a check-list of the courses you must take to graduate with a Kinesiology Honours degree. Also note that EPHE 357: Introduction to Research is a required course for Honours - it does not count as an elective course even if you have taken it before and thought of using it in this manner. MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND THE CREDIT COUNT! CLICK HERE to open a printable check-list of the courses you must take to graduate.
Brief Summary of the Kinesiology Honours Admission Process
1. Complete the Honours Application form and bring it to the Undergraduate Advisor, Dr. Brad Temple.
2. Dr. Temple will verify that you meet the GPA requirements.
3. If you meet the GPA requirements, Dr. Temple will return the form to you and you bring it to Dr. Krigolson.
4. If Dr. Krigolson agrees to supervise you he will sign the Honours form and return it to you.
5. You return the form to Dr. Temple who will then update your university record to show admission to a Honours Degree program.
6. Prior to commencing your Honours Project work, you will need to complete the attached Pro Forma course request to register in EPHE 499: Honours Thesis. Dr. Krigolson will help you with this.
CLICK HERE to learn more about the Honours program admission requirements.
If you are a UVic Psychology student interested in doing a Honours degree with Dr. Krigolson contact him via email and set up a meeting.
If you are a UVic Kinesiology student interested in doing an Honours degree with Dr. Krigolson, take a look at the recommended sequence of required courses presented below to see which courses you must take to receive your Honours degree. Dr. Krigolson only takes Honours students who have a year or more experience in the lab as neuroimaging methodology is too difficult to learn in a single year. Also note that Dr.Krigolson offers Directed Studies opportunities (EPHE 494) for prospective honours students - see more on this below. If you are not yet in the Kinesiology program but are interested in joining, CLICK HERE to see the Kinesiology admission requirements.
Honours students are in a 61.5 unit degree program as opposed to a 60.0 unit degree program. While EPHE 499 (Honour's Thesis) is listed as 3.0 units, only 1.5 of those 3.0 units count as kinesiology electives - the other 1.5 units are required over and above the non-Honours 60.0 unit requirement. For clarity, we have compiled a check-list of the courses you must take to graduate with a Kinesiology Honours degree. Also note that EPHE 357: Introduction to Research is a required course for Honours - it does not count as an elective course even if you have taken it before and thought of using it in this manner. MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND THE CREDIT COUNT! CLICK HERE to open a printable check-list of the courses you must take to graduate.
Brief Summary of the Kinesiology Honours Admission Process
1. Complete the Honours Application form and bring it to the Undergraduate Advisor, Dr. Brad Temple.
2. Dr. Temple will verify that you meet the GPA requirements.
3. If you meet the GPA requirements, Dr. Temple will return the form to you and you bring it to Dr. Krigolson.
4. If Dr. Krigolson agrees to supervise you he will sign the Honours form and return it to you.
5. You return the form to Dr. Temple who will then update your university record to show admission to a Honours Degree program.
6. Prior to commencing your Honours Project work, you will need to complete the attached Pro Forma course request to register in EPHE 499: Honours Thesis. Dr. Krigolson will help you with this.
CLICK HERE to learn more about the Honours program admission requirements.
Recommended Sequence of Courses
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Directed Studies
Students working in the Neuroeconomics Lab will have the opportunity to fill 1.5 or 3.0 units of their higher level EPHE or discipline related elective slots with one or two Directed Studies courses under Dr. Krigolson’s supervision - specifically, EPHE 494. Directed studies courses require the same amount of instructional hours as a typical course but can be done on your own time. Directed studies courses take many forms - some are research projects whereas others involve writing papers, data analysis, etc. Please contact Dr. Krigolson by email for more information.
Honours Project and Thesis
As an honours student In the Krigolson Laboratory you will be required to complete both an honours project and honours thesis. The project will consist of a year long research project that you will complete working in conjunction with a graduate student in the laboratory under Dr. Krigolson's supervision. Students typically plan the project during the summer (May to August), collect data during the fall (September to December), and analyze and write up the thesis project in the spring (January to April). In terms of completing the project, students will have to present their thesis project at either the honours poster conference or another similar venue. In the past, honours students have had the opportunity to present their project at a regional conference - NOWCAM.
Honours students are also required to write up their thesis research. Sample honours theses can be found HERE and HERE.
Honours students are also required to write up their thesis research. Sample honours theses can be found HERE and HERE.
Honours Timeline
prior to September or early September
Complete UVic pro-forma and other paperwork (see Dr. Brad Temple for more information)
Due Dates:
November 1 Introduction
January 1 Methods
February 1 Results
March 1 Full Draft of Thesis
Mid March Thesis Research Presentation (Internal)
April 1 Final Draft of Thesis to Dr. Krigolson
April to May Thesis Research Presentation (External)
With these dates in mind, data collection must be completed by the end of the first semester otherwise it is unlikely that the student will finish the honours thesis on time.
Complete UVic pro-forma and other paperwork (see Dr. Brad Temple for more information)
Due Dates:
November 1 Introduction
January 1 Methods
February 1 Results
March 1 Full Draft of Thesis
Mid March Thesis Research Presentation (Internal)
April 1 Final Draft of Thesis to Dr. Krigolson
April to May Thesis Research Presentation (External)
With these dates in mind, data collection must be completed by the end of the first semester otherwise it is unlikely that the student will finish the honours thesis on time.