Q: Classes / Registration

Are there suggested classes for students who are interested in neuroengineering? If not, are there some you suggest? Are we supposed to register for the neuroengineering seminar, or is that for people already in the NETI program?

Should I register soon or should I wait until orientation? Is there anything else I need to know about classes?

For registering -- have you received your registration packet in the mail already? Last year, we filled one out w/ a green sheet detailing personal info, including address, emergency contacts, etc.

If you're thinking of taking the medical school track, you should email Hong Lan and tell her -- that's the only registration that needs to be done before you get here. In general, med school classes have three to five lectures a day, from 8a to 1p. Sometimes there's a lab or discussion group meeting or journal club. The subjects are taught in blocks -- so if you take Molecules and Cells, that's done in September, and you move onto Immunology. It's kind of like having a final every couple of weeks, but you get complete immersion and then can focus on a new subject, rather than dividing your attention. It's intense, but fun.

For the Homewood/Engineering courses, registration at Hopkins is pretty laid back; you can really add/drop classes whenever. I suggest going to the first meeting of a class, and then, if you want to add it, fill out the form by add date. Quite a few people tend to register for a lot of classes, and then drop them by drop date. You do have to check periodically w/ the registrar to make sure that all of your paperwork/records are correct.

Hmm... if you're thinking of Homewood classes (biomedical engineering classes are taught through the School of Engineering), then I suggest looking at the JHU Registrar website and picking a few that pique your interest. You'll probably be given an introduction on how to register for classes during Orientation. If you're around the med campus, go to the JHMI registrar in Broadway Research Building and pick up a form. They'll also have a list of courses and course numbers. You can ask them more questions about registering.

For the alternate track/regular grad school classes: We're supposed to list classes on the JHMI form, and, if we're "cross-registering" between the med campus and Homewood campus, we need to fill out another sheet and have that signed by Hong Lan or Dr. Winslow. (Hong usually signs them. I think Alan Strong might be able to sign them, too; he takes care of a lot of our paycheck stuff, and he's in Traylor on the 7th floor.)

Some suggested Homewood classes: for Neuroengineering, it really depends on what you want to focus on. Most people recommend taking Models of the Neuron (Young) -- involves modeling and Matlab, Hodgkin & Huxley, etc. If you're going into a digital signal processing lab, or if you want to analyze neuronal firing, then taking Probability in the fall and Statistics in the spring are also recommended. Quite a few people take Applied Math for Engineering (Hilpert), which taught through the Department of Geographical and Environmental Engineering. If you're not taking the med school track, then you also should take Neuroscience and Cognition, which is basically a year-long version of the medical school "Neuroscience" course -- the med school version is more condensed, and taught in the spring.

A note about the Neuroengineering Seminar: last semester, the seminar was quite informal. This year, the students who are already part of NETI are thinking of working w/ Dr. Thakor to invite speakers, organize talks, or perhaps mesh it with our own summer seminar, which is basically a casual student-run journal club w/ free lunch. I'm not sure if I've registered for it yet, but Dr. Thakor will probably ask us for suggestions at the first meeting.

Added 8/15/06: You might actually want to head to the Registrar as soon as possible, to make sure that the paperwork's done on time.

From Tessa (PhD05 / Young Lab):

The students should take their questions about registration to Hong.

If you wait till orientation to sign up for classes you risk having a really messed up transcript. The med school registrar is archaic and they do everything by hand. It takes them forever to get registration information over to Homewood. We had people last year who signed up at orientation and weren't enrolled in classes yet at midterms. There are similar problems with adding and dropping classes.

Registration was due to the registrar by July 17th. I think you need to get the forms in ASAP so you're enrolled in the school. I know that you can defer choosing courses till September 1st, but there's some paperwork that has to be in so that you're enrolled as a full time student.

Honestly, questions about registration should be sent to Hong. She's in charge of getting all of this stuff organized. In terms of choosing classes, it depends on their backgrounds and their research interests. I'd encourage them to speak with faculty their interested in working with and/or their faculty advisors- that's what they're there for. Students are a good resource for finding out about classes and professors, but ultimately you don't want to waste your time taking classes you don't need- this is graduate school.

Phew! I hope that helps. A few of us second years, as well as quite a few first years, are taking Models of the Neuron, so we should do homework together. Woohoo for Matlab! :)