CNTG Student Handbook
From Cells to Systems and Applications: Computational Neuroscience Training
Grant (CNTG) at Emory and Georgia Tech
The CNTG is an NIH funded educational and research training program in Computational Neuroscience across Emory
University and Georgia Tech. Starting in the Fall of 2011, the program funds 3 new PhD students and 3 new
undergraduate students each year (combined, from the Emory Neuroscience program and the GT Department of
Biomedical Engineering) for a period of 2 years. The purpose of this handbook is to provide some basic information
about the activities of the program (coursework, rotations, etc) and how the program is mediated (stipends, training
expenses). For additional information, see the program website at http://compneurosci.college.emory.edu, or contact
the training grant PI Dieter Jaeger at Emory University (djaeger@emory.edu) or Co-PI Garrett Stanley at Georgia Tech
(garrett.stanley@bme.gatech.edu). Note that Garrett Stanley serves as the Director for Graduate Studies (DGS) for the
CNTG, and is thus the main point of contact for the graduate students, while Astrid Prinz serves as the Director for
Undergraduate Studies (DUS) for the CNTG, and is thus the main point of contact for the undergrads.
Methods Clinic and Journal Club
During the Fall and Spring semesters, journal club and methods clinic are held on alternating weeks. Journal club and
methods clinic are held at Georgia Tech in the fall semester and Emory in the spring semester. Methods clinics are
typically run by faculty or advanced graduate students who introduce specific computational methods. Journal clubs are
characterized by student presentations of a computational neuroscience paper. Typically students funded by this
training grant will be presenting once per semester. All student members of the CNTG are expected to attend all
methods clinics and journal clubs.
Lab Rotations
Graduate Students
In the first year of graduate study, students supported by the training grant will participate in three lab rotations (Fall,
Spring, Summer semesters). Note that all students must complete all 3 rotations, with no exceptions. At the end of the
first year, students will choose the lab they wish to continue with for the remainder of their graduate studies. Students
should rotate in the labs of program faculty (see website for complete list). If you wish to rotate with a faculty member
who is not program faculty on the grant, you can submit a request to the training grant leadership committee (Dieter
Jaeger, Garrett Stanley, Astrid Prinz, Rob Butera) to petition to have a particular faculty member added to the program.
A rotation summary and a technical report of the work done must be completed after each rotation. Both a signed
physical copy and an electronic version (word document) must be submitted to Garrett Stanley upon completion of the
rotation. The form is attached at the end of the handbook, and is available on the CNTG website in electronic form.
Undergraduate Students
Choosing Rotations
Students are required to perform two years of research, including two rotations in different labs. The first lab rotation
may start in either the summer before their junior year or that fall. If students choose to start in the fall, they are
expected to finish the summer after graduation if they wish to receive their full funding. Ideally, the student will do
these rotations early (first two semesters on the grant) so that they can spend a full year focusing on their senior thesis
project. Each rotation should be at least one semester long unless a shorter duration is agreed upon by the advisor.
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Students should rotate in the labs of program faculty (see website for complete list). If you wish to rotate with a faculty
member who is not program faculty on the grant, you can submit a request to the training grant leadership committee
(Dieter Jaeger, Garrett Stanley, Astrid Prinz, Rob Butera) to have a particular faculty member added to the program. A
rotation summary must be completed and submitted after each rotation (in addition to a technical report of the work
done), using the same format as that for the graduate student members. Both a signed physical copy and an electronic
version (word document) must be submitted to Astrid Prinz. The form is attached at the end of the handbook, and is
available on the CNTG website in electronic form.
Research Requirements
Joint Requirements
Students should present their research at a scientific conference. Some suggestions are the Computational
Neuroscience (CNS) meeting, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience (SfN), or the Computational and
Systems Neuroscience (Cosyne) meeting. This should be discussed with their research advisor. Students will also
present their research at the annual retreat.
Emory
Emory students must participate in the Emory Honors program, which requires a 3.5 GPA, completion of a research
methods class, completion of a graduate class, and a research thesis supervised by a committee and culminating in a
defense. Students will also attend the capstone Frontiers Neuroscience Seminar series.
Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech students must participate in the Undergraduate Research Option, which requires:



9 credit hours of undergraduate research (a form must be filled out before each semester to create the course
to sign up for; speak to research or academic advisors for details on what course to create and sign up for to
fulfill Reseach Option requirements).
LCC 4701, a one-credit course in which you will write your proposal. The proposal must be signed by your
faculty advisor. The student should register for this course after 6 hours of research have been completed and
the student has chosen their final advisor.
LCC 4702, a one-credit course in which you will write your thesis. The thesis must be approved by two faculty
members and published in the GT Library.
GT students must also attend the bi-weekly NeuroTalks.
Coursework
Graduate Students
The courses required by the training grant should mostly overlap with the coursework required by your graduate
program (Emory Neuroscience or Georgia Tech Biomedical Engineering). The courses are:





IBS 526: Neuroanatomy and Systems Neuroscience (Emory)
IBS 514: Cellular, Developmental, & Molecular Neuroscience (Emory): Selected Modules
BMED 7610: Quantitative Neuroscience (Georgia Tech)
IBS 534: Computational Neuroscience (Emory)
Two additional electives (Georgia Tech or Emory)
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Suggested Curriculum for first year:
Emory Neuroscience
GT BME
Fall Year 1
Spring Year 1
BMED 701* Integrative Core (1 or 3)
IBS 526 Neuroanatomy and Systems Neuroscience
BMED 7610 Quantitative Neuroscience
BMED 7001 Seminar
BMED 9000 Doctoral Thesis Hours
3
7
3
1
7
TOTAL
IBS 526 Neuroanatomy and Systems Neuroscience
NS 570R Neuroscience: Communication and Ethics
NS 551 Techniques in Neuroscience
NS 597R Laboratory Rotation
IBS 530R Frontiers In Neuroscience Seminar
PSI 600 Scholarly Integrity Core Class
BMED 7610: Quantitative Neuroscience
TOTAL
21
7
2
1
1
1
0
3
15
BMED 7012 Integrative Core 2
IBS 514 Cellular and Developmental Neuroscience
IBS 534: Computational Neuroscience
Engineering elective
BMED 7002 Seminar
BMED 9000 Doctoral Thesis Hours
TOTAL
IBS 514 Cellular, Developmental, & Molecular Neuroscience
NS 570R Neuroscience: Communication and Ethics
NS 597R Laboratory Rotation
IBS 530R Frontiers In Neuroscience Seminar
IBS 534: Computational Neuroscience
3
3
3
3
1
8
21
7
2
2
1
4
TOTAL
16
Undergraduate Students
Course requirements are specific to the university the undergraduate attends. Students are expected to plan in advance
to ensure these requirements are fulfilled.
Joint Requirements
All students are required to fulfill an ethics requirement. The spring before a student participates in summer research,
they should contact Dieter Jaeger to register for Emory's SURE Ethics program. The SURE Ethics program consists of a
weekly meeting to cover ethics as well as basic research topics such as mentor-mentee relationships, communication
skills, and graduate school advice.
Emory Course Requirements
 NBB301 Introduction to Neurobiology (sophomore or junior year)
 NBB301L Introduction to Neurobiology lab (with NBB301)
 One of:
o BMED 7610 Quantitative Neuroscience (Stanley)
o IBS 534 / BIOL450 Computational Neuroscience (Jaeger)
Georgia Tech Course Requirements
 BMED 4752 Introductory Neuroscience (Potter)
 BMED 4400 NeuroEngineering Fundamentals (Potter)
 One of:
o BMED 7610 Quantitative Neuroscience (Stanley)
o IBS 534 / BIOL450 Computational Neuroscience (Jaeger)
 Research option requirements
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Finances
Graduate Students
The training grant provides stipend support, tuition support, and support for education related expenses (including
travel). Each student is also entitled to the use of 15,000 free hours of CPU usage on the Emory Ellipse High Performance
Compute Cluster. Students interested in this option should prepare a use proposal and submit it to Dieter Jaeger.
BME Students: Funding will come from both the training grant AND BME GRA resources. Tuition support will be split
between the training grant and the GRA funding. Stipend support will also be split between the training grant and GRA.
This means that $1800/month ($21,600/year) of your stipend will be administered through the financial aid office
because it is coming from the training grant. The remainder of your stipend will be administered through the GT payroll.
This simply means you will receive your monthly stipend through two separate deposits. The training grant provides
support for the fees due each semester as well as health insurance. Additional training related funds for each student
amount to approximately $3000. These funds can be used for conferences, summer schools, and training related
expenses such as Computational Neuroscience book purchases, a laptop to be used for research, etc. It would be wise to
make a plan for how you can use this money to optimize your training experience. At least $750 of this amount should
be paid for travel each of the 2 years of support. See below for additional information about reimbursements for
training related expenses (if not direct billed, you will pay for any expenses and then seek reimbursement from the
Emory Biology Accounting Department).
Neuroscience students: Funding will come from both the training grant and the GDBBS to be supplemented to GDBBS
levels. The stipend support will be paid through the GDBBS. Additional training related funds for each student amount
to approximately $3000. These funds can be used for conferences, summer schools, and training related expenses such
as Computational Neuroscience book purchases, a laptop to be used for research, etc. It would be wise to make a plan
for how you can use this money to optimize your training experience. At least $750 of this amount should be paid for
travel each of the 2 years of support. Note that the actual amount for training related expenses is actually higher than
$3000, but student fees and health insurance are also to be paid from this fund. The amount available beyond $750
travel can be found out roughly 6 months into the academic year.
Undergraduate Students
Your stipend will come in 4 separate checks each year of approximately $2850 per check ($11,400 in total). Students are
also allotted $1500 per year for additional training-related expenses, which can be used for conferences, training-related
expenses (laptops, books, software), and other approved items. At least $750 of this amount should be paid for travel
each of the 2 years of support. Follow the instructions below on reimbursements or contact the Biology accounting
office (information below) with questions. Each student is entitled to the use of 15,000 free hours of CPU usage on the
Emory Ellipse High Performance Compute Cluster. Students interested in this option should prepare a use proposal and
submit it to Dieter Jaeger.
Reimbursements
Reimbursements are handled by the Biology Accounting Department (located on first floor of Rollins at Emory). Methods
for reimbursement are listed below. Most purchases need to be preapproved by Dieter Jaeger before they can be made.
A list of purchases that need preapproval and that do not need preapproval is also included below.
Requires Approval
Conference travel
Computer/Computer Supplies (requires CAS Exemption form)
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Can be Purchased Without Approval
Society Membership (ex: OCNS, SFN)
4
Expense Reports: To get reimbursed for conferences/travel – Bring the following to the Biology Accounting Office
1. Receipts for conference registration, flights, accommodations, travel, and food.
 Tape the receipts to a sheet of printer paper if they are small (don’t staple)
 Airfare must be booked through Emory:
o To book: go to finance.emory.edu | Travel | Booking Airfare
 From here, can choose a website to purchase from. Need Smart Key (SK) number to
purchase
 When asked for an e-mail to send notification, send a copy to Gail Scheu at
lscheu@emory.edu
 If you are claiming specific meals instead of per diem, need a copy of BOTH the itemized receipt and the
credit card receipt showing payment
2. Copy of the conference book cover, showing the conference title, location, and dates
3. A Travel Report Form
 If you have access to Emory Peoplesoft (must be 'employed' by Emory - at this time, it will not work for
GT students), go to the Peoplesoft log-in | employee resources | travel resource center| create |
expense report form. After filling in the form, SAVE it (do not submit). Have a member of the Biology
Finance Office double-check the entries before submitting. If you submit and something must be
changed, your request must be denied first and then resubmitted (more paperwork)
 if you do not have access to Emory Peoplesoft (GT students), you will have a guest account created for
you that will then be accessed by someone in the Biology Finance Office (i.e. your form will be created
for you when you go to the office).
Other Purchases:



Bring receipts to the Biology Accounting Office and they will help you file them correctly
If you are working in an Emory lab, you may be able to direct bill some purchases. You can only direct bill airfare
using the SK number/account and you can direct bill conference fees using a P-card
If you wish to buy something like a computer, you will need to file a CAS exemption form (details below)
Cost Accounting Standard (CAS) Exemption Form



Must provide a detailed explanation for the requested funds (i.e. computer)
Recommend sending form to Lynn Kennedy (dkennedy@emory.edu) for pre-approval
Upon approval, purchases can be made through the Emory purchasing system (Dieter Jaeger will assist with
purchasing). Approved CAS form must be attached to the purchase order.
Acknowledging CNTG Support in Abstracts and Publications
When you submit a conference abstract or a paper you must acknowledge your CNTG support by referring to our official
NIH grant numbers, for example, “Your name was supported by NIH training grant”.
The numbers to give are:
5R90DA033462 – undergraduates and international graduate students
5T90DA032466 – the remaining graduate students
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Contact Information
Please contact other students as well as Dieter Jaeger (djaeger@emory.edu) and Garrett Stanley
(garrett.stanley@bme.gatech.edu) with any questions you might have!
2011 Class
Undergraduate
Students
Graduate
Students
2012 Class
Undergraduate
Students
Graduate
Students
2013 Class
Undergraduate
Students
Graduate
Students
Undergraduate
Students
Allie Del Giorno
Claire Tang
Abdul Zaheer
Seth Koenig
Clarissa Shephard
Charles Zhao
Rebecca
Butterfield
Sayan Chatterjee
Sara List
Kyle Blum
Ilya Kolb
Michael McKinnon
Camden
MacDowell
Melissa
Puntkattalee
Christopher
Versteeg
Aiden Payne
Varun Saravanan
Kun Tian
Caroline Holmes
2014 Class
Benjamin Kichline
Graduate
Students
CNTG Handbook 2/6/16
Chi Le
Shaquia Idlett
Christopher Sinon
Adam Willats
Georgia Tech ECE major
Emory
Emory
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
Emory Computer Science and NBB
double major
Emory Biology major
Emory NBB and Creative Writing
double major
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
Emory NS program
Emory NBB major
allie.delgiorno@gatech.edu
ctang6@emory.edu
akzahee@emory.edu
skoenig@gatech.edu
cshephard3@gatech.edu
czhao34@gatech.edu
rebecca.butterfield@emory.edu
Georgia Tech Biochemistry major
mpuntkattalee@gatech.edu
Georgia Tech BME major
cversteeg3@gatech.edu
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
aiden.payne@bme.gatech.edu
Emory NS program
Emory NS program
Emory Biology and Physics double
major
Emory Computer Science and Math
major
Emory NBB and Math double major
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
Emory NS program
Georgia Tech/Emory BMED
varun.saravanan@emory.edu
ktian3@emory.edu
caroline.holmes@emory.edu
skchatt@emory.edu
slist@emory.edu
kylepblum@gmail.com
koljr2005@gmail.com
mlmckinnon@gatech.edu
cmacdow@emory.edu
b.k.bolte@emory.edu
chi.le@emory.edu
shaquia.I.idlett@gmail.com
cgsinon@gmail.com
awillats@purdue.edu
7
Emory/GT NIH Computational Neuroscience Training Grant (CNTG)
ROTATION EVALUATION/REPORT – Graduate and Undergraduate
(Must be filled by the mentor and student, and discussed)
Date:
Student Name:
Mentor:
Term of Rotation:
GRADE (Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory):
How many hours/week did the student spend in the lab:
Brief summary of the project the student was involved in: (Clearly state what were the goals the student had to
achieve in this project):
Mentor: Impressions of the student’s overall performance (Reliability and conscientiousness, Ability to collect
and analyze scientific data, Record keeping, Accuracy, Technical skills, comprehension, communication skills,
self-reliance and independence, intellectual curiosity - Emphasize the strengths and weaknesses of the
student):
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Mentor: Achievements (Did the student succeed to achieve the goals set up at the beginning of the rotation? If
not, why?):
Student: Describe the balance between experimentation and computation in your rotation:
Student: Summarize your experience in the group as a whole. Did you attend and participate in group
meetings? Did you work with other group members?:
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Student: What did you get out of the rotation (what you learned, progress made on the project,
accomplishments (poster, presentation, etc.))?
Student signature:
Mentor: _______________________________________________
Name
Signature
Date
Please return this form (along with an electronic unsigned version by email) no later than one week after
ending the rotation to:
Graduate Students:
Undergraduate Students:
Prof. Garrett B. Stanley
Director of Graduate Studies
NIH Computational Neuroscience Training Grant
Program
Department of BME
3102 UA Whitaker Building, Georgia Tech
garrett.stanley@bme.gatech.edu
http://www.stanley.gatech.edu
Prof. Astrid Prinz
Director of Undergraduate Studies
NIH Computational Neuroscience Training Grant
Program
Department of Biology
Emory University
astrid.prinz@emory.edu
http://www.biology.emory.edu/research/Prinz/
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