Thornton, who is also the neuroscience program director, focuses her research on how hormones exert their effect on the brain to affect behavior. She didn't always dream of being a neuroscientist. I changed my major to psychology and spent an extra year in undergraduate work. I didn't even know what a Ph.D. was. I had a work-study job in the costume shop of the theater, but was able to get another job working with animals in the labs and helping professors with their research.
Students are academically bright and academically serious.
They want to learn, and they appreciate when you challenge them. In this program, the student spends the first three years at Oberlin and the next two at the engineering school, graduating with a B.A. from Oberlin and a B.S. in engineering from the engineering school. In addition to the broad appeal of Caltech's traditional engineering programs, Caltech's major in computation and neural systems might interest Oberlin neuroscience students, and its program in environmental-engineering science complements Oberlin's major in environmental studies. Richard McKelvey '66, professor of political science at Caltech, helped forge the new partnership.