Erasmus MC Research Master Neuroscience

Self-assessment of prior knowledge (an anonymous test)

Essential Requirements

The Research Master Neuroscience program will assume basic knowledge of some essential biology, physics and mathematics. This questionnaire is designed to help you decide if you meet these essential requirements (or are willing to work on self-learning for preparation).

Please check all boxes that apply.

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* 1. Regarding basic knowledge of molecular biology and biochemistry

I can describe a cell and its organelles.

I know the difference between DNA, RNA, alleles and genes.

I know the difference between transcription and translation.

I know what proteins and enzymes are.

I know the purpose of plasmids and vectors.

I know the basics about pH and buffers.

I made chemical solutions before and know how to make dilution series from them.

I know how temperature influences biochemical processes.

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* 2. Regarding basic knowledge of cell biology

I know that the cell membrane is a bi-lipid layer

I know what an ion channel is.

I can name the 3 main parts of a neuron.

I know what myelin is.

I know what a synapse is.

Besides neurons, I know also other cell types that present in the brain.

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* 3. Regarding basic knowledge of anatomy

I know the difference between autonomic and non-autonomic nervous system

I know the difference between sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system

I know which structures belong to the central nervous system and which ones to the peripheral nervous system

I know what the essential function is of the pyramidal tract

I know how many ventricles are present in the human brain

I know the different lobes of the human brain

Given a brain, I can find the location of the cerebellum

I know how many cranial nerves are directly emerging from the human brain (incl. brainstem).

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* 4. Regarding basic knowledge of neural systems

I know all 6 human sensory systems and of their related stimulants.

I can describe the biomechanics of a limb movement.

I understand the purpose of a reflex arc and I can describe an example of a reflex arc.

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* 5. Regarding basic knowledge of neurological disorder

I know the symptoms related to Alzheimer disease.

I know the symptoms related to Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease.

I know the symptoms related to MS and ALS.

I know the symptoms related to Autism spectrum disorder.

I know the symptoms related to Schizophrenia.

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* 6. Regarding basic knowledge of biophysics and electricity

I know what the difference between an atom and an ion is.

I know the difference between diffusion and osmosis.

I understand the difference between charge and current

I know how a battery stores charge.

I know the basic behavior of a capacitor.

I know the basic behavior of a resistor.

I can write the equation that relates potential with resistance and current.

I know how a membrane potential is generated.

I know how an action potential is generated.

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* 7. Regarding basic knowledge of mathematics

I know the purpose of integrating a function.

I know the purpose of differentiate a function.

I used trigonometric functions in my previous studies.

I know the purpose of linear regression.

I know the purpose of a Fourier transformation.

I have encountered ordinary differential equations in my previous studies.

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* 8. Regarding basic knowledge of scientific methods (design and statistics)

I know how to formulate an hypothesis.

I know the difference is between sampling and population distribution.

I know the what the difference is between parametric and non-parametric statistical tests.

I understand the difference between one-tail and two-tails testing.

I know what the difference is between an unpaired and paired t-test.

I understand the concept of a cross-over design.

I understand the difference between significance level α and the p-value.

I understand the difference between Type I and type II errors.