Want to study a Neuroscience/Neurobiology program in one of the best universities in the United States? As a neuroscience major, you’ll learn the biological underpinnings of human behavior through the intensive study of the nervous system.

Neuroscience programs require students to take a broad array of coursework in biology, chemistry, psychology, and the humanities. The field of neuroscience and behavior deals with many subjects, all of which relate to the study of the brain and nervous system.

In the list below, these are the top universities for neuroscience and behavior, based on their reputation and research in the field. View our complete list and choose the best one for your career. Good luck!!!

Harvard University

Harvard is the oldest institution of higher education in the United States, established in 1636. Neuroscience is one of the programs in the Harvard Integrated Life Sciences, which facilitates collaboration and cross-disciplinary research. Neuroscience is an area of study within the Division of Medical Sciences, an administrative unit based at Harvard Medical School that coordinates biomedical Ph.D. activities at the Longwood Medical Area. Students in Ph.D. programs and some master’s programs receive grants and fellowships that cover their educational cost.

Rank: 1st
Finance and Administration Office: karen_harmin-at-hms.harvard.edu or 617-432-0912
Website: http://www.hms.harvard.edu/DMS/neuroscience/index.html

Stanford University

The Stanford Neurosciences Institute is dedicated to understanding how the brain gives rise to mental life and behavior, both in health and in disease. The Stanford Neurosciences Institute is creating the Stanford Program in Neuroscience and Society (SPINS), a multidisciplinary initiative to study how neuroscience affects society, and to bring neuroscientists knowledge of human behavior and cognition from scholars in law, education, and business. Neurosciences Institute programs advance neuroscience research through interdisciplinary research grants.

Rank: 2nd
Finance and Administration Office: neuroscience-at-stanford.edu or 650-723-3573
Website: https://neuroscience.stanford.edu

University of California–San Francisco

The University of California, San Francisco offers an interdisciplinary program for graduate training in neuroscience. The purpose of this program is to train doctoral students for independent research and teaching in neuroscience. Participation in Neuroscience Program activities does not require membership in the Neuroscience Program. The program welcomes the attendance of all interested UCSF faculty, students and other trainees at its retreat, seminars and journal club.

Rank: 3rd
Finance and Administration Office: Fax: 415-476-2098 or neuroscience-at-phy.ucsf.edu
Website:  http://neurograd.ucsf.edu/about-neuroscience-graduate-program

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MIT is home to numerous world-class laboratories that are at the forefront of neuroscience research. These lab groups are focused on understanding nervous system function and the biological basis of brain disorders, engaging in an abundance of interdepartmental collaborations across MIT. There are so many diverse opportunities to engage in neuroscience research at MIT that the options can be somewhat overwhelming.

Rank: 4th
Finance and Administration Office: (617) 253-5748
Website: https://bcs.mit.edu

Columbia University

The Columbia University offers a diverse set of research and academic experiences that reflect the interdisciplinary nature of neuroscience. They invite you to learn more about the Columbia University Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior. Over one hundred faculty from two campuses combines coursework and experiential learning in basic, clinical and translational science, providing an exceptionally broadly based education.

Rank: 5th
Finance and Administration Office:  (212) 853-1735 or (212) 853-1733 or NeurobiologyPhD@cumc.columbia.edu
Website: http://www.neurosciencephd.columbia.edu

University of California–San Diego

The Neurosciences Graduate Program at the University of California, San Diego, together with our participating institutions, offers an outstanding opportunity for graduate training in one of the most highly interactive scientific environments available in the United States. Their graduate program is ranked fourth in the country by the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences. The Neurosciences Graduate Program currently includes more than 130 faculties, whose research interests are described on this website. There are approximately 70 graduate students and over 60 postdoctoral scholars.

Rank: 6th
Finance and Administration Office:  (858) 534-3377, Fax: (858) 534-8242, neurograd@ucsd.edu
Website: https://medschool.ucsd.edu/education/neurograd/Pages/default.aspx

Johns Hopkins University

The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University that founded in 1980 by neuroscience pioneer Sol Snyder who was one of the first Neuroscience Departments established in the country. The Neuroscience Training Program and the Neuroscience Department were among the first neuroscience-focused academic centers established in the United States. Their faculty has trained over 250 Ph.D. and MD/ Ph.D. students and 500 postdoctoral fellows in just the past ten years, partnerships that have led to fundamental discoveries in the organization of the cerebral cortex, neurotransmitter signaling, neuronal and glial cell development, and circuit function.

Rank: 7th
Finance and Administration Office:  410-614-2447, F: 410-614-6249, hopkins_neuroscience @jhmi.edu
Website: http://neuroscience.jhu.edu

University of California–Los Angeles

UCLA is the home of an outstanding and vibrant neuroscience community, including laboratories in diverse departments in the David Geffen School of Medicine, the College and the Samueli School of Engineering. UCLA offers graduate training in Neuroscience through the Interdepartmental Ph.D. Program for Neuroscience (NS-IDP). The program includes about 150 laboratories in diverse areas spanning the field from molecular analysis to genetics and behavior. Students in the program learn modern problem-solving skills and use state of the art approaches to explore a deeper understanding of how the brain processes information.

Rank: 8th
Finance and Administration Office: neurophd@mednet.ucla.eduor (310) 825-0616.
Website: http://www.neuroscience.ucla.edu

University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is one of the world’s preeminent institutions for neuroscience research and training. The Department of Neuroscience is located in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. There approximately 200 faculties from 32 departments and six schools, including Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine, Engineering and Applied Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, and Veterinary Medicine.

Rank: 9th
Finance and Administration Office: (215) 898-8754, Fax: (215) 573-0833, kenneym@pennmedicine.upenn.edu
Website: https://www.med.upenn.edu/neuroscience/

Yale University

The new Department of top Universities to Study Neuroscience Programs at the Yale University School of Medicine seeks to understand the biology and function of the nervous system at all levels of analysis. Their multidisciplinary graduate training program allows students to gain expertise in models ranging from invertebrates to primates, and in techniques including molecular and cellular neurobiology, in vitro and in vivo electrophysiology and imaging.

Rank: 10th
Finance and Administration Office:  203.785.4323
Website: https://medicine.yale.edu/neuroscience/

Washington University in St. Louis

The Neuroscience Program at Washington University in St. Louis offers outstanding neuroscience education for Ph.D. students and exciting research opportunities for Postdoctoral scientists. The Program includes a broad spectrum of research laboratories that study how the brain works, how it develops and how it malfunctions in disease. The Neuroscience Ph.D. program at Washington University in St. Louis aims to train the next generation of leaders in neurobiology.

Rank: 11th
Finance and Administration Office: P:(314) 362-7043, F:(314) 747-3436, susan@brainvis.wustl.edu
Website: http://neuroscience.wustl.edu