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Interested in doing Cognitive Neuroscience research? Apply Here!
Undergraduates
Undergraduate students in their freshman or sophomore years who are interested in doing research with Dr. Olson should email her at iolson@temple.edu. The typical time commitment is 10 hours per week. Students with strong computer skills are favored. Unpaid summer internships also exist for undergraduates.
Research Assistant/Lab Manager Positions
Students interested in research assistant positions should contact Dr. Olson by email (iolson@temple.edu). Research assistantships require a 2-year commitment and several skills are required including strong computer skills (e.g. evidence of skills with Matlab, UNIX, C++, etc.) and some knowledge of cognitive psychology and/or neuroscience.
Graduate Students
Students should apply to Temple University Psychology Department at http://www.temple.edu/psychology/graduate/applications/index.htm. Application deadline is December 15th, 2008. It is strongly suggested that interested students contact Dr. Olson before applying to the program. Here are some tips on applying to graduate school, written by an Olson lab alum: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mooreks/.
Post-doctoral
Post-doctoral applicants should contact Dr. Olson by email (iolson@temple.edu). If there is an opening in the lab, a CV, one page single-spaced statement of previous research, one page single-spaced statement of future research interests, and two letters of recommendation will be required.
Visiting Scholars
If you have a visiting scholar grant and would like to do cognitive neuroscience research (especially fMRI) contact Dr. Olson by email (iolson@temple.edu). Interested applicants should consider applying for an international fellowship; see http://www.andp.org/forneuroscientists/funding/federal.htm.
Tips on Applying to Cognitive Neuro Grad School
By the time you’ve decided to apply to psychology grad school, many facets of your academic story are already crystallized. Your grades and skill set may be difficult to improve upon at this point. The advice here is on how to make the most of the qualitative aspects of your application.
1. Make sure you know what you are getting into
Being a graduate student in Cognitive Neuroscience means that you will be in school for 4-6 more years. You will also need to be very self motivated because most of your time will be in front of a computer. You also will be testing subjects that you may or may not like, in studies, which you may or may not like.
2. Narrow in on your research interests
This is tough to do, but is absolutely necessary. You need to be able to say “I want to do research on memory” and then you need to be able to say WHY you want to do this research. Please don’t say that it’s because your great aunt has Alzheimer’s Disease. Instead, it will impress your interviewers if you can tell them about some relevant books or journal articles you read on this topic and what you took away from this. For this, you need to do some intensive reading on your topic of choice.
3. Personal contact
Yes, this is a good thing (usually). Contact interested parties by email, making sure that you’ve proofread your email carefully. This will show that you are motivated and on top of things. Make sure the professors have not retired or passed away (many web pages are outdated).
4. Write a beautiful Statement of Research Interests. You may want to get help from a writing center or a skilled friend for this. This and your letters are the most important parts of your application. You’re probably thinking that GPA matters the most, but to me and others I know, the statement matters more.
5. Make a good impression at the interview. You don’t need to wear a suit, but dress nicely. Take out atypical body piercings and cover tattoos (may offend some people). Shave. Don’t giggle or do anything that seems childish. Have some practiced statements about research interests, as well as reading up on some of the latest cognitive neuroscience findings at http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/mind_brain/. Read up on cognitive neuroscience research interests at Temple and memorize who does what.
6. Send a thank-you email. Do this if you liked what you saw at the interview. It will keep your name fresh in the mind of the faculty members you met.