1. What is the difference between the Neuro & Biology Combined Honours and the Neuro and Mental Health programs?

Neuroscience & Biology is only available as a 20-credit Honours and is truly a combined honours with Biology, as it offers an equal split of NEUR and BIOL courses, with emphasis on upper-year BIOL courses with labs. There is the option to complete a 4th-year honours project in BIOL as opposed to NEUR and you have greater access to the faculty members and research happening in the Department of Biology. In this program, there are hardly any electives to take, so exploring other disciplines or adding a minor is not as straightforward. Co-Op is available in this program.

It’s worth noting that our Neuroscience & Biology Combined Honours is the only program that will grant you direct access to Cell Biochemistry with a lab, Organic Chemistry with a lab, and the upper-year anatomy and physiology courses. If you’re thinking of pursuing medicine, there are some medical schools that require these courses as prerequisites for admission. Depending on the year, it may be possible to take these courses as part of the Neuroscience & Mental Health program, but there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to register in them. 

Neuroscience and Mental Health comes in three types of degrees: a 15-credit and 20-credit Major, and a 20-credit Honours. These programs include many NEUR courses and more room for electives, so it’s easy to explore other disciplines and potentially add up to two minors. You can refer to the next question and our programs page for more information.