Cognition & brain sciences
About the program
The cognition and brain sciences track of our MSc and PhD programs covers areas like embodied cognition, memory and visual perception.
We aim to understand the nature of the representations and processes that cause mental events. We also study how the memory of past mental events affects later experiences and behaviour. We use many empirical approaches, including:
- naturalistic studies of children and adults
- lab experiments
- brain imaging
- case studies of brain-damaged patients
- computational modeling
Each faculty member has a microcomputer-based laboratory for data collection, data analysis and computational modeling. The group holds a variety of specialized equipment and software (e.g., state-of-the-art eye tracking and 3-D kinematics). We have connections with medical facilities that provide opportunities for research with neurological cases.
We provide graduate students with office space and shared access to laboratory facilities.
Faculty members
Core faculty
- cognitive control
- attention
- memory
- aging
- motor representations and cognitive processing
- role of higher-level motor systems in cognition
- integration of functional imaging
- computational cognitive neuroscience
- working memory
- executive control
- decision making
- memory and cognition
- eyewitness memory
- cognitive neuroscience
- computational modeling
- statistics
- language
- cognitive and neural mechanisms of expertise
- face recognition and perception
- experimental techniques in vision research
- collaborative research on object and scene perception
- memory
- visual attention
- eye movements
- cognitive aging
Affiliated faculty
- clinical neuropsychology
- executive functioning
- sports concussions
- clinical neuropsychology
- neuroimaging
- cognitive neuroscience of aging
- dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
- quantitative modeling
- longitudinal research design
- development of executive function
- development of embodied cognition
- nature-based education and self-regulation
- development of executive function
- development of embodied cognition
- nature-based education and self-regulation
- lifespan development
- developmental research methods
Research themes
- cognition and action
- reinforcement learning, errors and decision-making
- cognitive control and working memory
- from visual input to meaning
- visual expertise
- memory in action: basic theory and applied domains
- cognitive development
Admissions
Learn everything you need to know about becoming a UVic grad student, from finding a supervisor to submitting your application.
Applications for a September 2025 start are due November 30, 2024 through My UVic application.
Psychology MSc admission requirements
Courses
Our graduate program emphasizes collaborative research activities more than coursework. We believe courses are important to help you succeed as a scholar.
We offer courses that we believe will be of direct relevance and value for our students' research. Our program is designed to give a good deal of flexibility regarding how and when requirements are met.
In our MSc and PhD programs, you’ll complete the program’s course requirements and additional courses for the cognition and brain sciences track.
Funding
Faculty in the Cognition and Brain Science Program are committed to fully supporting our graduate students through various funding sources including research fellowships, teaching stipends, and scholarships. Each student is guaranteed a minimum of $17,500/year for 5 years. Most students get more than this.
This level of funding is sufficient for a person to get by in Victoria (even after paying tuition). The sources of this support will vary from student to student and from year to year. Those sources include:
- research assistantships (typically, this consists of getting paid to do cool research with your supervisor)
- teaching assistantships (typically limited to no more than 10 hours per week, starting at about $31/hour)
- scholarships
These sources of support can often be combined to produce income over the $17,500 minimum (although there are certain limitations on how funds can be combined).
Students with major postgraduate scholarship and fellowships also receive a $4,000 top-up from UVic (for NSERC, SSHRC, and CIHR scholarships; $2,000 top-up for some other major scholarships).
For example, a student with a $27,000 Canadian Graduate Scholarship from NSERC would get an additional $4,000 from UVic (roughly equivalent to having tuition paid). It's often possible for students with such scholarships to further supplement their incomes by working as teaching assistants.
Faculty in the cognition and brain sciences program provide grad students with workspace and basic work tools. We also often cover part of the costs of attending conferences at which the student presents or co-authors present research. UVic's Faculty of Graduate Studies provides up to $600/year to support conference travel.
Co-op
UVic is home to the largest co-op graduate program in Canada. Learn about combining co-op placements with your program on the co-op for graduate students website. Grad students are also eligible for the shorter work experience program.