Cognitive science programs vary in focus and can be found at undergraduate or graduate levels. They overlap with fields such as psychology, neuroscience, computer science, linguistics, and philosophy, with courses from multiple departments allowing students to specialize. Programs can emphasize practical and experimental courses, or theoretical and philosophical aspects, and degrees awarded vary by school.
Cognitive science is an interdisciplinary field that overlaps with fields as diverse as psychology, neuroscience, computer science, linguistics, and philosophy. As a result, cognitive science programs can be equally diverse, depending on the area or areas of study they focus on. Cognitive science programs can also be at the undergraduate or graduate level.
Many cognitive science programs are made up of courses from multiple departments, allowing students to create their own specialties within the field. Others, however, are more concentrated within a given department. The types of courses offered in the department and the degree awarded on completion of the program are indicators of which areas of cognitive science are emphasized at that school.
Programs found in the psychology department, for example, can do experiments to see how humans respond to various learning challenges in a controlled environment. Neuroscience-based cognitive science programs may have similar goals, but specifically investigate the biological functioning of the brain. They can use neural imaging or other technologies to monitor how the brain performs certain tasks.
Some cognitive science programs emphasize artificial intelligence. In this subfield of cognitive science, researchers study how the mind processes information to create computer models that can mimic human intelligence. This branch of study assumes that human connections in the mind are analogous to logical rules in a computer. Study programs focused on cognitive linguistics can map grammatical rules from English or another language to “teach” computers to create speech or text that mimics human language.
While the types of cognitive science programs described above tend to have practical and experimental courses, some programs focus more on the philosophical aspects of cognition. These are mostly theoretical and not experimental. They can discuss the mind’s relationship with the body and other concerns.
In addition to differences in methodology and approach, cognitive science programs also vary based on the types of degrees awarded. Some schools offer only master’s or doctoral programs, others offer only undergraduate degrees, and many offer both. Cognitive science studies at the undergraduate level are likely to have more face-to-face courses and fewer research courses. The opposite is true for graduate programs.
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