Programme Structure

You may also download the pdf version of the full syllabus HERE

No. of Credits

Components

Major

Minor

Introductory courses

Disciplinary

Prerequisites*

6

12

6 -

Advanced courses

Core courses

Disciplinary electives

Capstone experience

24

6

24

6 -

* Candidates who opt to declare two major programmes offered by the Faculty of Social Sciences should avoid selecting overlapping prerequisites.

Notes

A course will be counted as fulfilling the major/minor requirement only if it is not taken as fulfilling another curriculum requirement.
The major# option/minor option is open to all HKU undergraduates. Candidates are required to have Level 3/above in HKDSE Biology, Chemistry or Combined Science OR equivalent courses such as CHEM1041 Foundations of chemistry, SCNC1112 Fundamentals of modern science to demonstrate their proficiency in the sciences (subject to the approval from the Department of Psychology), before enrolling in the neuroscience core courses.

# The Neuroscience programme can only be taken as a multidisciplinary/second major

Programme Requirements

Candidates who wish to declare a major (72 credits) or minor (36 credits) in Neuroscience must complete the following. In view of the pre-requisite requirements for advanced disciplinary electives which will have implications for students’ course choice and study load, students should approach the Department of Psychology if they intend to declare the major/minor so that proper academic advising and mentoring can be given. Prior approval from the Department is required before students can declare the major/minor.

Introductory courses
(18 credits for major, 6 credits for minor) Note @

All candidates must complete the following disciplinary course:

PSYC1001

Introduction to psychology (6 credits)

Pre-requisite courses
(12 credits)

Candidates who major in this programme must complete two pre-requisite courses at introductory level from any faculties, bearing in mind the pre-requisite requirements for courses listed in the “Disciplinary Electives”, and take the relevant pre-requisite courses as necessary.

For non-BSocSc students, they shall select PSYC1004 Introduction to quantitative methods in psychology or a similar statistics course from another department (e.g. STAT1005 Essential skills for undergraduates: Foundations of Data Science) to fulfil one of their pre-requisite requirements, and make up the rest 6 credits by taking any introductory course of which should be the pre-requisite course of an advanced course in neuroscience curriculum from any faculties. Students may also consider taking the course COMP1117 Computer programming to better prepare for further research in the capstone experience or thesis in neuroscience.

Note@: Should there be an overlap of introductory courses for the two majors, candidates will be exempted from such requirements for the neuroscience major and are required to make up any credit shortfall arising from such double-counting by taking disciplinary electives.

Advanced courses
(54 credits for major, 30 credits for minor)

Core courses
(24 credits for both major and minor)

Candidates who major or minor in this programme must complete the following courses:

PSYC2101. Foundations of neuroscience I (6 credits)
PSYC2103. Foundations of neuroscience II (6 credits)
PSYC2111. Neurobiological basis of psychological issues (6 credits)
PSYC3054. Human neuropsychology (6 credits)

Disciplinary electives (24 credits for major, 6 credits for minor)
Note #

Candidates who major in this programme must complete 24 credits from the course list below in which 12 credits must be from the stream of “Neuroscience electives” and the rest of the credits from “Other electives”. These 24 elective credits must be offered by at least two different departments.

Candidates who minor in this programme must complete at least 1 elective from either stream of “Neuroscience electives” or “Other electives”. These 6 elective credits must be offered outside the Department of Psychology.

In the interest of deepening the understanding of subject matters taught in the field of Neuroscience, candidates who wish to minor in Neuroscience may also take the introductory course PSYC1004 Introduction to quantitative methods in psychology as free elective in addition to the completion of the disciplinary electives.

In sum, the following courses offered by different departments are grouped under two streams. Candidates who major/minor in Neuroscience are required to complete at least 24/6 credits from the courses listed below and these elective credits must include at least one disciplinary elective course offered outside the Department of Psychology.

First Stream “Neuroscience electives”

PSYC2102. Seminar in neuroscience (6 credits)
PSYC2110. Developmental neuroscience (6 credits)
PSYC2112. Research internship in neuroscience (6 credits)
PSYC2113. Introduction to brain imaging (6 credits)
PSYC2114. Special topics in neuroscience (6 credits)
PSYC4101. Thesis in neuroscience (12 credits) *
BBMS3011. Molecular neuroscience (6 credits)

*Internship/thesis (For major only)

Second Stream “Other electives”

BIOL3105. Animal physiology & environmental adaptation (6 credits)
BBMS3012. Stem cell biotechnologies in regenerative medicine (6 credits)
BMED3501. Medical imaging (6 credits)
PSYC2007. Cognitive psychology (6 credits)
PSYC2051. Perception (6 credits)

Capstone experience (for major only)

Candidates who major in this programme must complete one of the following courses:

PSYC3061. Advanced issues in perception (6 credits)
PSYC3068. Advanced cognitive psychology (6 credits)
PSYC4102. Capstone project in neuroscience (6 credits)

Note#: During course registration, students should pay special attention to the prerequisite(s) of courses as specified in the syllabuses. Students must complete the relevant prerequisite courses before taking the corresponding disciplinary electives. In exceptional cases these maybe waived.