Program Overview

Introduction to the Cognitive Science Graduate Certificate Program

The Rutgers Center for Cognitive Science offers a Graduate Certificate in Cognitive Science, an interdisciplinary area of scholarship concerned with understanding the nature and development of intelligent capacities such as perception, language, reasoning, planning, problem-solving, and related skills. This program is designed for students earning degrees in participating departments who wish to earn a certificate in Cognitive Science by completing additional requirements.

Program Description

Cognitive Science is an interdisciplinary field that draws on multiple academic departments, including Psychology, Linguistics, Philosophy, Computer Science, and others. The goal of the Cognitive Science Certificate Program is to provide a structured way for students to study and carry out research in Cognitive Science, with guidance from relevant faculty advisors, and to bring interested students from different departments together in a graduate student community integrated into the general university research community.

Admission to the Certificate Program

Admission to the Cognitive Science Graduate Certificate Program is based on academic performance and interests, and requires the approval of the graduate program of the department in which the student is enrolled. Students in good standing in their departments may petition the Certificate Program Director for admission as official candidates for the Certificate in Cognitive Science. This will normally occur after students have completed the required Cognitive Science ProSeminar in Cognitive Science (16:185:500).

Certificate Program Requirements

To receive the Cognitive Science Graduate Certificate, students must successfully complete the requirements for a postgraduate degree in the department in which they are registered, and must also meet the following additional requirements:

1. Successful completion of the ProSeminar in Cognitive Science (16:185:500): A multidisciplinary graduate survey seminar taught by various Cognitive Science faculty.
2. Completion of Independent Studies in Cognitive Science (16:185:699): A research project under the direction of a participating faculty member, normally outside the program in which the student is registered.
3. A minimum of 9 additional credits from qualifying courses: A minimum of 6 of the 9 credits must be taken from outside the graduate department in which the student is registered.

Qualifying Courses

The following courses are qualifying courses for the Cognitive Science Graduate Certificate:

• Biomedical Engineering (16:125)
  • 513 Visual Research and Instrumentation
  • 516 Visual Pattern Recognition
  • 520 Neuroelectric Systems
  • 525 Biological Control Systems
  • 526 Brain Dynamics
  • 530 Nonlinear Dynamics, Chaos, and Fractals
  • 532 Cyto-Mechanics
  • 610 Advanced Topics in Computers in Biomedical Engineering
  • 615 Advanced Topics in Brain Research
  • 620 Neural Networks and Neurocomputing
• Cognitive Science (16:185)
  • 600 Seminar in Cognitive Science I
  • 601 Seminar in Cognitive Science II
  • 602 Seminar in Cognitive Science III
  • 603 Seminar in Cognitive Science IV
  • 604 Seminar in Cognitive Science V
  • 605 Parallels between Minds and Machines
• Computer Science (16:198)
  • 503 Computational Thinking
  • 504 Computational Modeling
  • 512 Introduction to Data Structures and Algorithms
  • 508 Formal Languages and Automata
  • 509 Foundations of Computer Science
  • 513 Data Structures and Algorithms
  • 520 Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
  • 530 Principles of Artificial Intelligence
  • 531 Artificial Intelligence Software
  • 532 Foundations of Knowledge Representation
  • 533 Natural Language Processing
  • 534 Computer Vision
  • 535 Pattern Recognition
  • 536 Machine Learning
  • 598 Topics in Problem Solving Methods
  • 671 Seminar: Computer Vision
• Electrical & Computer Engineering (16:332)
  • 590 Socially Cognizant Robotics
  • 595 Design Methods for Socially Cognizant Robotics
  • 640 Robotics and Society
• Linguistics (16:615)
  • 510 Syntax I
  • 511 Syntax II
  • 512 Syntax III
  • 515 Seminar in Syntax
  • 520 Phonology I
  • 521 Phonology II
  • 522 Phonology III
  • 525 Seminar in Phonology
  • 530 Semantics I
  • 531 Semantics II
  • 532 Semantics III
  • 535 Seminar in Semantics
  • 540 Phonetics
  • 545 Seminar in Phonetics
  • 610 Formal Methods
  • 631 Field Methods
  • 670 Seminar in Learnability and Linguistic Theory
• Philosophy (16:730)
  • 505 Survey in Philosophy of Mind
  • 506 Survey in Philosophy of Language
  • 510 Mathematical Logic
  • 513 Logic and Natural Language
  • 570 Seminar in Philosophy of Language
  • 575 Seminar in Philosophy of Mind
  • 664 Advanced Topics in Philosophy of Social Science
  • 670 Advanced Topics in Philosophy of Language
  • 675 Advanced Topics in Philosophy of Mind
  • 676 Advanced Topics in Philosophy of Psychology
  • 678 Advanced Topics in Decision Theory
  • 679 Topics in Logic: Logic of Philosophy
• Perceptual Science (16:714)
  • 521 Integrative Methods in Perceptual Science I
  • 522 Integrative Methods in Perceptual Science II
• Psychology (16:830)
  • 513 Neurolinguistics
  • 514 Sensation and Perception
  • 515 Computational Vision
  • 518 Perception, Cognition and Action
  • 534 Psychology of Decision Making
  • 546 Memory and Attention
  • 547 Computational Models of Cognition
  • 550 Language Development
  • 552 Perceptual Development
  • 554 Development of Cognitive Processes
  • 555 Nervous System and Behavior
  • 602 Psycholinguistics
  • 611 Seminar in Perception
  • 637/638 Seminar in Cognition
• Graduate School of Applied Psychology (18:844)
  • 513 Introduction to Autism
• Newark Psychology (26:830)
  • 515 Neuroimaging Methods & Theory

Guidelines for the Independent Research Project

One of the requirements for obtaining a Certificate in Cognitive Science is to complete an independent research project that will provide breadth of experience outside of the methodologies typically used in the student's home discipline. The project should be started in the second year and should take less than a calendar year to complete. The research project should be on a topic with which the student is already familiar, but approached from the perspective of an allied discipline.

Conclusion

The Cognitive Science Graduate Certificate Program at Rutgers University offers students a unique opportunity to explore the interdisciplinary field of Cognitive Science. With a wide range of qualifying courses and a flexible research project requirement, this program is designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the field and prepare them for careers in research, academia, and industry.