Students in the Wellesley Neuroscience program benefit from being able to participate in real projects using cutting-edge equipment, and working with our world-class faculty.

Students present at national meetings, including the Society of Neuroscience , and Endocrine Society Meeting .

A select group of students also present each year at the Wellesley College Ruhlman Conference, where students present their work to an unusually wide audience. By providing an opportunity for public presentation of what is often a private, isolated activity, the Ruhlman Conference will demonstrate that research can be part of the ongoing conversation in a community of scholars.

Student Projects

How glutamate transporters affect lifespan and behavior in the worm, C. Elegans (with Deb Bauer).

How do circadian rhythms influence the birth of new neurons in lobsters  (with Barb Beltz).

How are 3-D cues from image motion and stereo vision integrated by the
human visual system (with Ellen Hildreth)

What are the neural mechanisms of learning and memory of vocal communication signals in songbirds?  (with Sharon Gobes).

How are 3-D cues from image motion and stereo vision integrated by the human visual system  (with Ellen Hildreth).

How do estrogens regulate energy homeostasis and the gut microbiome in females (with Marc Tetel).

Internal State modulates sensory perception in the fruit fly, Drosophila  (with Sara Wasserman).

Sensory detection: what are the neural correlates of perceiving an auditory stimulus? (with Mike Wiest).

"State of the Art" Equipment

At Wellesley College, we study the morphology, chemistry, and physiology of neurons. We have acquired all the necessary and modern tools to enable research and teaching in all of these areas of neuroscience. Our electrophysiology facilities are used to study electrical potentials in neurons using both intracellular and extracellular recording techniques. Faculty laboratories, as well as a teaching lab housing four electrophysiology set-ups, are used by undergraduates in course labs and for independent research projects.

In addition, Wellesley College was among the first colleges to acquire a confocal microscope, which uses lasers to optically section tissues for high-resolution fluorescence studies. This instrument also is devoted to course labs and student projects. Our most recent acquisitions are instruments for DNA sequencing and a 9.4T magnetic resonance imaging facility that is used to examine living organisms in longitudinal studies. Other large equipment items include two electron microscopes, an NMR, cryostat, HPLC and a water maze; every teaching lab is outfitted with the highest quality compound and stereo microscopes.  Over 800 programs with NSF, REU, NASA and other paid summer research opportunities for undergrads

Internship and Research

Paid Summer 2019 Undergraduate Research Placements from Pathways to Science - Over 800 programs with NSF, REU, NASA and other paid summer research opportunities for undergrads

Internship Opportunities- A list of internship opportunities from Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience

Research and Training Opportunities at the NIH- Paid Summer 2019 Undergraduate Research Placements-Career and education options from the National Institute of Health

Wellesley College Summer Science Research