The program is offered in English and leads to the Master degree in Cognitive Science. Students choose between two tracks:
Each track offers a selection of specialized courses, to allow students to tailor their training to their academic interests. The curriculum includes courses focusing on neurophysiological aspects of cognitive processes, the study of human behavior, and human-computer interaction.
Two characteristic features of this program are a close relationship between teaching and research practices & a constant interplay between biology-based and technology-based explorations of the human mind and brain.
The programme provides research-focused training with a varied, international group of faculty and researchers. All students are actively involved in developing research projects and have access to the laboratories during the Master’s course, thus gaining invaluable hands-on experience with cutting-edge research technologies. This includes functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), magnetic encephalography (MEG), transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), electroencephalography (EEG), eye tracking, cinematic motion tracking, psychophysics, computational modeling, & comparative cognition (animal models) for the CN track; and for the LMI track, machine learning technologies, like deep learning and multitask learning, will be applied to language understanding in interaction with other modalities.
The knowledge and skills gained during the Master’s course will most of all provide a foundation for advanced scientific research, but also prepare for professional applications in more applied settings.
The Master’s degree course in Cognitive Science is aimed at the acquisition of advanced theoretical and methodological knowledge in cognitive science through an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the mind-brain system and of human language through computational models. The perspective adopted is that of the interdisciplinary approach, which integrates the biological, technological and cognitive approaches in order to allow a better understanding of human action, focusing the educational intervention and other educational activities mainly on cognitive neuropsychology and on computational linguistics.
The curriculum is characterized by training experiences and significant research activities at highly qualified laboratories, both in the field of brain-imaging (fMRI, EEG, TMS, etc.) and in the field of natural language processing, also in order to achieve the implementation of the skills acquired. We also offer students the opportunity to attend training courses abroad as part of international exchange programmes and of numerous collaborations with foreign universities. The assessment of the competences acquired will take into consideration both the theoretical knowledge and the practical skills acquired by students, also in the context of integrated courses across multiple disciplines.
Graduates will be able to apply advanced skills in cognitive science using computational, observational and experimental methodologies in the study of the mind-brain system and computational linguistics. The course of study will also allow students to conduct research activities as part of the analysis and development of systems related to human cognitive performance, conducting empirical research and the development of neural and computational models of cognition. They can perform these tasks as independent professionals or also as consultants at public and private entities.
The Master's degree in Cognitive Science provides access to doctoral courses in the disciplines of cognitive science, both in Italy and in Europe and the United States. The CIMeC offers a PhD program in Cognitive and Brain Sciences.
