Get Involved
UConn COGS majors and minors can also prepare for life after graduation by getting involved in research, internships, student organizations, study abroad, and other experiences outside the classroom.
Through these opportunities, you’ll learn more about your interests, expose yourself to new ideas, gain professional skills, and build a network that will support you beyond UConn.
Research
Getting involved in research opportunities as an undergraduate can help you:
- Build your resume
- Define your academic goals
- Get exposure to new interests and career pathways
- Learn valuable transferable skills that can be used in any career or industry
- Build meaningful relationships with your professors and peers
UConn Cognitive Science majors can take advantage of opportunities through faculty research labs and independent projects. These experiences can be the high point of your college experience and give you the skills you’ll need after graduation.
Internships
Internships are experiences that give you the opportunity to apply your coursework to real-world problems and gain professional connections with employers. Our Cognitive Science students are encouraged to incorporate at least one internship in their academic plan, typically during their sophomore or junior year.
Clubs and Organizations
UConn offers hundreds of student clubs and organizations that not only help you meet and interact with your peers, but also give you an opportunity to explore something you're passionate about while building professional skills. To search student groups by category, click here. You can also create your own club or organization if you don't find one that meets your interests.
Some existing organizations that may be of interest to Cognitive Science students are:
UConn Logic Group
The UConn Logic Group is a highly active interdisciplinary research center, with faculty and student members from mathematics, philosophy, linguistics, cognitive science, law, and other areas.
UConn Kids in Developmental Science
UConn Kids is led by a group of researchers from more than 35 child development and behavior labs across the University, representing departments such as Psychology, Linguistics, SLHS, and Communication.
UConn Psychology Club
UConn Psychology Club is meant to bring together students who have a shared love of psychology by providing an opportunity to learn more about the people around us and the world we live in.
UConn FROST Robotics
UConn FROST Robotics is a competitive robotics club that seeks to combine many engineering disciplines (Electrical, Software, Mechanical) to cultivate a community of well-rounded engineers.
UConn Undergraduate Science Journal
UConn Undergraduate Science Journal is an online, open-access, peer-reviewed academic journal dedicated to the select publication of independent research conducted by UConn undergraduate students within all STEM disciplines, that is any research that explores the physical sciences using the scientific method. Every submission will undergo a double-blind peer review process by the USJ’s Student Editor Committee and will be scored on scientific value, methodology, writing, and results. The top papers will be reviewed by the Faculty Review Committee, which consists of appointed faculty members from Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Computer Science and Engineering, and Cognitive Science and will be scored on a similar rubric. Any UConn student with a complete scientific research paper that meets the USJ requirements is eligible to apply. Members of the club will gain insight into the process of scientific writing and publishing scientific research through editing, scoring, and publishing the journal. The applicants will learn the process of submission and approval of scientific research papers. The journal is set to promote student scientific research among the UConn undergraduate student body and hopes to eliminate some barriers of getting STEM research published by undergraduate students.
Also be sure to check out the UConn Involvement Fair at the beginning of each semester for organizations that may be of interest to you.
Study Abroad Opportunities
Study Abroad Programs offer the chance to learn and earn credit in many different places around the world. UConn's Experiential Global Learning has a database of current programs available. Students who are interested in studying abroad should be sure to meet with their academic advisor in the advising office. The purpose of this meeting is to help you determine what types of courses you must take abroad.
The Cognitive Science Program offers the Study Abroad Travel Award, which helps provide airfare costs to UConn undergraduate students majoring or minoring in Cognitive Science who have been accepted into a study abroad program.
Please see some popular Study Abroad opportunities below:
Neuroscience Study Abroad Program in Salamanca, Spain
This program is a joint effort by UConn and the Institute of Neuroscience of Castilla y Leon, USAL. We offer undergraduate-level neuroscience courses (taught in English) that are suitable for majors or minors in Neurobiology or premedical science. Spanish language courses help science students become familiar with Spain and Spanish culture.
UConn Brain & Behavior in Tel Aviv, Israel
This program gives students a chance to pursue their studies in Psychology/Education/Cognitive Science/Neuroscience. This 4-5 week program is led by Drs. Etan Markus (UCONN Psychology) , Ido Davidesco (UCONN Education), Eric Levine and Srdjan Antic (UCONN Health) together with colleagues at Tel Aviv University.
Summer Interdisciplinary Ethnography Field School in Mauritius
This program is targeted towards students across all fields in the social sciences and the humanities. The course will provide an introduction to ethnographic fieldwork through daily virtual interactions with a group of Mauritian students, scholars, artists, activists, and other local people. It will go through qualitative as well as quantitative methodologies, which will be applied to real-life data collection in collaboration with our Mauritian team.