Graduate Degrees in Animal Behavior
Faculty from the Departments of Biology, Psychological & Brain Sciences, Neuroscience, Anthropology and other departments provide broad and intensive training in neuroscience, learning, development, ecology, and evolution. The graduate program offers a minor and an area certificate in animal behavior. Focal research topics include mate choice and sexual behavior, parental behavior and development, migration and orientation, communication and learning and developmental plasticity. Program graduate students are encouraged to work in more than one laboratory, bringing to bear multiple techniques and conceptualizations on particular problems. Training requirements include courses in neuroscience, evolution, and learning/ development, plus special year-long topical seminars. The program invites eminent visiting scientists to participate in these seminars, give workshops, and interact with students and faculty.
Graduate students enrolled at IU-Bloomington may obtain a Ph.D. Minor in Animal Behavior and/or a Ph.D. Area Certificate in Animal Behavior through the program by completing the requirements below (application instructions are also provided on this page).
PhD MINOR IN ANIMAL BEHAVIOR:
Graduate students must be enrolled at Indiana University- Bloomington, and members of CISAB. Four courses are required for the Ph.D. minor. In addition, students must pass a qualifying examination, as required by their home department or program.
At least FOUR courses taken from at least two different graduate programs/departments, as specified below:
1. ONE A501 Seminar in the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior
2. ONE course from the following list, emphasizing mechanisms of behavior:
N500 Neural Science I
N501 Neural Science II
N550 Sem. Sensorimotor Neuroplasticity
P548 Neuroethology
L560 Physiological Ecology3. ONE course from the following list, emphasizing evolutionary perspectives:
L567 Evolution
Z540 Population Genetics
L573 Quantitative Genetics & Microevolution
L581 Behavioral Ecology
B568 Evolution of Primate Social Behavior
B600 Evolutionary Theory in Anthropology4. ONE additional course from above or from the list below:
P561 Comparative Animal Physiology
P417 Animal Behavior
Z460 Ethology
Z466 Endocrinology
L505 Evolution and Development
P504 Learning and Motivation
P717 Evolutionary Bases of Learning
P527 Developmental Psychobiology
P526 Neurobiology of Learning & Memory
Q551 Brain and Cognition
Q700 Theoretical Issues in Animal Cognition
Area Certificate
The requirements for the Area Certificate in Animal Behavior include all of the requirements of the Ph.D. Minor, plus one additional semester of A501, and one additional course from the list below. Like the Ph.D. minor, the Area Certificate requires a qualifying examination, as specified by the student's home department or program. Students must fulfill a statistics requirement as required by their home department or program, and must submit a thesis.
The AREA CERTIFICATE in Animal Behavior would include all of the above requirements PLUS the following:
1. One additional A501 Seminar in the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior
2. A502 Professional Ethics for the Bio-Behavioral Sciences or P595 First-Year Research Seminar
3. One additional course from 1-4 above.
To Apply:
First, students interested in obtaining an undergraduate minor or area certificate in Animal Behavior must be accepted into a degree-granting graduate program at Indiana University - Bloomington. To obtain application forms to Indiana University, contact a program directly (for example, Biology Department, Psychological and Brain Sciences, Department, the Program in Neuroscience). After being accepted by IU, students should apply for membership into the Program in Animal Behavior by filling out the on-line form for CISAB membership, by picking up an application form from their biology or psychology undergraduate advisors, or by contacting CISAB directly (via email to cisab (AT) indiana.edu or coming to 402 N. Park).
