Clinical Neuroscience & Research Experience
(CNR-X) International

This is our second year teaming up with an organization in China to host the Clinical Neuroscience Research Experience (CNR-X), an international version of our CNI-X program. CNR-X International is a two-week, residential version of CNI-X, designed specifically for international students from China. This year’s CNR-X dates are August 5–18, 2018.

For more information please contact Byers at byers@stanford.edu

For application details, please see the ICProject website.

The Clinical Neuroscience & Research Experience (CNR-X) International is an immersion experience for high achieving high school students from China, many of whom are likely to attend highly competitive U.S. colleges. All students who successfully finish the experience will receive a certificate of completion from the Stanford Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. The curriculum will cover a wide and diverse spectrum of topics in neuroscience, psychiatric disorders, research in psychiatry, psychological and social aspects of behavioral sciences. The experience is structured around five key themes of instruction, described below:

• Neuroscience and Neuroscience Research
  Study various fundamentals and theories of neuroscience and behavioral science, and research in these fields (Knowledge of the “Brain Facts Book” from the Society for Neuroscience will be assumed).
• Clinical Neuroscience
  Learn about the diagnosis and treatment of various neuropsychiatric disorders and research findings relating to these disorders.
• Research Project
  Design a research project in student teams, with guidance from Stanford faculty and Stanford staff mentors.  Since two weeks is too short a time to actually conduct meaningful and significant research, students will focus on learning about research and the early phases of planning and setting up a research project.  We will follow an approach well known at Stanford and Silicon Valley for designing innovative research projects that involves needs finding, brainstorming, rapid prototyping, and presenting/pitching one’s research ideas. All student research teams make a brief research presentation on graduation day and compete for a grand prize for research projects.
• Train the Brain
  Learn how research findings in neuroscience and behavioral science may apply to improving everyone’s brain functioning and success.
• The Stanford Experience
  Sample the Stanford experience and prepare for highly competitive U.S. colleges. Live in a Stanford on-campus dormitory, eat in Stanford dining halls, visit sites at Stanford, and interact with Stanford faculty and staff mentors.

The Program will primarily be conducted in Stanford classrooms in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. The program will involve designing a research project in student teams, active oral participation by students, small group discussions, lectures, demonstrations, at least one field trip, and learning exercises. Almost all of the instructors are faculty members of Stanford University. We also have staff mentors and members who support the instructors and the Program. Students should speak English fluently and have their own laptop computers (the Program will not be responsible for damage or loss of personal property, including but not limited to laptop computers).