University System of Georgia Format for New Program Proposal

APPENDICES

APPENDIX I

SURVEY RESULTS

1. What department are you currently a student in?

Response Total

Biology 24

Chemistry 1

Computer Information Systems 1

Computer Science 4

Mathematics and Statistics 1

Philosophy 2

Physics and Astronomy 4

Psychology 14

Other (please specify) 0

Total Respondents 51/51

2. Some of my research interests lie within the field of Neuroscience:

Response Total Biol & Psych Students

Strongly Agree 35 32

Agree 13 6

Neutral 2 0

Disagree 1 0

Total Respondents 51/51 38/38

3. I have completed Neuroscience-related coursework while in graduate school.

Response Total Biol & Psych Students

Strongly Agree 33 32

Agree 8 5

Neutral 3 0

Disagree 7 1

Total Respondents 51/51 38/38

4. A degree in Neuroscience would accurately reflect my graduate training.

Response Total Biol & Psych Students

Strongly Agree 26 24

Agree 10 8

Neutral 7 2

Disagree 8 4

Total Respondents 51/51 38/38

5. I would have applied for a graduate degree in Neuroscience had it been offered by Georgia State University.

Response Total Biol & Psych Students

Strongly Agree 25 24

Agree 7 5

Neutral 9 4

Disagree 10 5

Total Respondents 51/51 38/38

6. A degree in Neuroscience would prepare me to pursue my career goals.

Response Total Biol & Psych Students

Strongly Agree 23 22

Agree 16 10

Neutral 9 4

Disagree 3 2

Total Respondents 51/51 38/38

7. I would prefer to earn my degree in Neuroscience

Response Total Biol & Psych Students

Strongly Agree 19 18

Agree 11 9

Neutral 13 8

Disagree 8 3

Total Respondents 51/51 38/38

8. Do you have a faculty member from another department at Georgia State University on your dissertation or advisory committee?

Response Total

Yes 10

No 20

Total Respondents 51/51

9. Do you have a faculty member from another university in Atlanta on your dissertation or advisory committee?

Response Total

Yes 14

No 16

Total Respondents 51/51

10. As a graduate student have you taken a course related to Neuroscience in another department at Georgia State University?

Response Total

Yes 20

No 31

11. As a graduate student have you taken a course related to Neuroscience at another university in Atlanta?

Response Total

Yes 11

Total Respondents 51/51

12. How would a Neuroscience degree at Georgia State University be beneficial?

Total Respondents 24/51

Answers:

1. I believe Georgia State University Neuroscience program is competitive with any other university in USA. But as a physics graduate student it would be better to have more bridge courses (6000) so that non Neuroscience majors can also follow Neuroscience 8000 courses more easily.

2. Having a defined degree in Neuroscience may attract more students with the same goals. This would allow for better communication within a tight community. As it is currently set-up at Georgia State University with only a degree in Biology allowed, the interests of the students seem far too dispersed making it difficult to form collaborations.

3. A Neuroscience degree will reflect better my knowledge and my specialty. It will be more specific than a degree in Biology, which is too general in my opinion.

4. The degree itself wouldn't be particularly important for me considering that my interests are largely clinical, however I believe that having a department with a strong Neuroscience program allows clinical students broaden their experiences.

5. A Neuroscience degree would reflect both my personal interests as well as my career goals. Given the strong emphasis and growth in the Neurosciences with regard to public interest, scientific interest, and funding, a specialized degree would reflect my focus furthering my ability to work within these sectors.

6. I think a Neuroscience degree at Georgia State University would allow students following their graduate work to appeal more to institutions that are looking for candidates with specific requirements. I think also students looking for a Neuroscience-specific program would apply to Georgia State University when otherwise they would not have because of the absence of such a program.

7. The bio dept already has a neuro degree

8. As I am from Physics, I find it difficult to answer this question.

9. my training is in Neuroscience, not biology, so I would rather say I'm getting my Ph.D. in Neuroscience than saying a Ph.D. in Biology with emphasis in Neurobiology and Behavior.

10. would allow students who wish to specialize in that field to do that...instead of having to specialize in a round-about way

11. It would generate faculty and coursework that would be relevant to my career goals, and attract more students that have interdisciplinary interests, in between psychology and biology

12. In terms of having the Neuroscience program separate from the rest of biology, it would more reflect my graduate training as compared to a degree that vaguely states "Arts & Science".

13. I guess I don't see a big difference between Neuroscience and behavioral Neuroscience.

14. It would accurately reflect the work that is being done in our labs and the coursework that we are taking. More specificity in our awarded degrees would be beneficial once we are looking for jobs as well.

15. A Neuroscience degree would most likely minimize the amount of coursework I take that is not directly related to Neuroscience, i.e., ethics in psychology and history of psychology. Additionally, a Ph.D. in Neuroscience would be more reflective of the training I received during graduate school for any future employers/collaborators. Finally, this degree program could bring together students with very similar interests into a single, unified program, rather than those individuals who are interested in Neuroscience being a marginal group within departments with diverse interests.

16. It would make it easier for the Neuro and behavior graduate students to seek a job in the Neuroscience field.

17. A Neuroscience degree would be beneficial because their degree would show that they focused on Neuroscience during their graduate career. This would mean that a student has a specific knowledge and understanding of the Neuroscience field.

18. I think having a Neuroscience degree at GSU could potentially benefit the institution by making more explicit the school's commitment to and offerings in Neuroscience, thereby allowing GSU to attract more Neuroscience-focused graduate students.

19. It would better fit students who now are split between Biology and Psychology and may be a "draw" for potential applicants.

20. Would add classes that are more focused on important fundamentals of Neuroscience. Specifically... Neuron membrane potentials, channels and essential biophysics. How gene expression leads to changes in the nervous system. More focused classes on brain areas and function.

21. It would more accurately portray my graduate work. While I doubt that a Ph.D. in biology would hinder my career as compared to a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, all of my course work and research is 100% Neuroscience related. It seems somewhat foolish to not get a degree in what I am actually doing. On a similar note, I think a Neuroscience degree/department would increase the profile of the great Neuroscience faculty we have at GSU which should benefit the university as a whole.

22. It would reflect our field of research more directed and specifically.

23. Well for people interested particularly in Neuroscience, a focused training and orientation towards the aspects of Neuroscience would have been particularly better. As is quite obvious nowadays, Neuroscience has emerged as an independent discipline, which includes elements from Biology, Physics, Math, Statistics, Computation, Psychology & Chemistry. So in my opinion a solid and rigorous graduate level training in Neuroscience along with the specific tools would have been particularly beneficial for the students who are genuinely interested in Neuroscience regardless of the background s/he is coming from. Neuroscience is truly an interdisciplinary subject, and so people from any discipline who really want to pursue it can come be trained, get benefit and make some important contributions for the subject. So if a degree program in NS was opened in GSU and different groups are able to get trained I hope that will really benefit NS research as a whole and also make GSU prominent in one of the core areas of research in this century.

24. I think a Neuroscience degree at GSU is a great idea. As a psychology student, I find that my course requirements are tailored preferentially to the other psychology concentrations (clinical, developmental, community, etc.). As a result, I have to spend time and effort on courses that are not particularly relevant to my academic pursuits, and take courses through other departments to supplement. I think a Neuroscience degree would solve some of these problems.

13. Do you have any other comments with regard to having a Neuroscience degree program at GSU?

Total Respondents 17/51

Answers

2. I am strongly in favor for a degree in Neuroscience at GSU.

3. From my perspective as a CLN student, I like the idea of having the ability to work in different settings (e.g. wet labs) and with students and faculty from the Neuroscience field.

4. I'm split on this topic. On the one hand, I think a higher degree of specialization would be beneficial. On the other hand, I do think a degree in Biology gives students the opportunity and appeal of being educated more broadly about the field (however it's possible that some see this as a disadvantage). I don't think I've missed out at any opportunities at this point because I'm in a Biology program and not a Neuroscience-specific degree program, but I think the positives of having this program could outweigh the negatives.

5. I have enjoyed it

6. None

8. No

10. Neuroscience program would attract lot more graduate students into GSU

11. I would hope that developing a Neuroscience degree program would not mean excluding any of the interdisciplinary involvement of students and faculty that is already occurring.

12. I worry about the impact it would have on biology and psychology. Similarly, would Neuroscience grad students still be taking Psychology and Biology courses, or would they have special "Neuroscience" courses? Overall, however, I feel the pros would outweigh the cons (especially in the long term).

13. I believe a Neuroscience degree program would bring in students (and research) whose role would be to bridge some of the segregation between the sciences.

14. I think having a Neuroscience degree program would heavily benefit Neuroscience at GSU in general. It could bring more attention to the great research being done at GSU by pulling some of the great work out of the biology grouping and into a class of its own. By the same token, I do not think it would hinder the biology department in any way. GSU is a strong school for collaborations, and the Neuroscience and biology departments would be closely bound. I only see benefits in having degree programs specific to the work being done.

15. I would extremely appreciate for such specialization..

16. Well since this questionnaire is being submitted by me, I hope that something really happens and may help us in tackling some challenging problems of Neuroscience.

17. Should a Neuroscience degree-granting program be implemented, I hope that students currently enrolled in other programs will be allowed to transfer into it.