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Contract Courses

Contract courses are designated for students conducting supervised individual research or investigation under the guidance of a faculty mentor. Students in the Neuroscience major and minor may enroll in the Neuroscience contract courses to satisfy major or minor requirements.

NEUROSC 198A/198B, 199A/199B, and 199C

NEUROSC 198A and 198B (Honors Research in Neuroscience) are 4 unit, letter-graded contract courses open to students in the Neuroscience major who are pursuing Departmental Honors. Departmental Honors students must enroll in these contract courses to satisfy the Independent Research capstone option.

NEUROSC 199A and 199B (Directed Research in Neuroscience) are 4 unit, letter-graded contract courses open to students in the Neuroscience major and minor. Students in the Neuroscience major may enroll in these contract courses to satisfy the Independent Research capstone option. Students in the Neuroscience minor may enroll in these contract courses to satisfy one minor elective requirement.

NEUROSC 199C (Continued Directed Research in Neuroscience) is a 4 unit, letter-graded contract course open to students who have previously completed NEUROSC 198A/198B or 199A/199B and are interested in earning additional upper division units for their research involvement. This contract course does not satisfy any Neuroscience major or minor requirements.

Eligibility Requirements

  • Be a declared Neuroscience major or minor*
    • *Students in the Neuroscience minor may only complete NEUROSC 199AB to satisfy one elective requirement for the Neuroscience minor
  • Junior or Senior standing
  • Minimum 3.0 major GPA
    • Students with a major GPA below 3.0 must have their faculty mentor email the Neuroscience Advising Office (neurosci@ucla.edu) with a brief statement of support for their lab participation. Students will not be enrolled in the contract courses until the statement of support is received.
  • Prior completion of NEUROSC M101A with a C- or better and at least one quarter of SRP-99/199 with the same lab/faculty mentor
  • Must be conducting Neuroscience-related research
  • Faculty mentor must be a member of the UCLA Academic Senate
    • If you are completing a contract course with a faculty from UCLA Health, please note that UCLA Health Sciences now requires that you complete onboarding and obtain clearance through the UCLA Health Sciences Volunteer Office. For more information, please see here.

      Enrollment Steps and Information

      All course contracts and materials are due on Friday of Week 1 by 4PM PST via Bruin Learn. Course contracts must be created each quarter that a student will be enrolling in either NEUROSC 198AB or 199ABC.

      Students will receive an email confirmation once they have been enrolled in the Neuroscience contract courses by the end of Week 2, pending there are no issues with your submission. Please refrain from sending multiple emails to the Neuroscience Advising Office regarding the status of your course contract, as this may delay processing.

      Course Contract Creation Instructions

      1. Log in to MyUCLA.
      2. Navigate to the “Classes” tab, then select “Contract Courses”.
      3. Select “Create a New Contract”.
      4. Select the correct term (e.g., 26S = Spring 2026) and select the course (e.g., Honors Research – 198 or Directed Research – 199).
      5. Review the enrollment information and click Next.
      6. Select NEUROSCIENCE as the Subject Area and click Next.
      7. Select the course number (e.g., 199A, etc.) and click Next.
      8. Search for your faculty mentor by their last name. Click Select and then Next.
      9. If applicable, the system will check to confirm if you have completed the required workshop: Laboratory Safety Fundamentals. If you have completed the workshop, and your certification is current, you will be able to move ahead with creating your contract. You will not be permitted to move ahead with creating the contract until you have completed the workshop.
      10. No selections need to be made on the following page since all Neuroscience contract courses are 4 units each and on a Letter Grade basis. Click Next.
      11. Enter descriptions of research project and tangible evidence. Click Next.
      12. Review the contract summary. Click Next.
      13. Confirm you meet the eligibility terms/requirements for the contract. Click Next.
      14. Download the form as a PDF and have it signed and dated by your faculty mentor. You do not need to obtain the Chair’s signature.

      NEUROSC 198A & 199A

      1. Create and download the NEUROSC 198A or 199A contract via MyUCLA.
        • Under “Project Description,” write “see attached”.
        • Under “Evidence,” write “A status report at the end of this quarter and continued research in NS 198B or 199B in the consecutive academic quarter”.
      2. Download and complete the Checklist and Proposal Outline document.
        • Include proof of completion of the Laboratory Safety Fundamental Concepts Course, if applicable (indicated on MyUCLA contract).
        • Obtain faculty mentor directory information from the UCLA Campus Directory (see here for example).
      3. Complete the Faculty Sponsor Form.
      4. Obtain your faculty mentor’s signature on the MyUCLA course contract and the Faculty Sponsor Form.
      5. Submit the MyUCLA course contract, Checklist and Proposal Outline documents, and Faculty Sponsor Form as one PDF submission to the Bruin Learn website by 4PM PST on Friday of Week 1.

      NEUROSC 198B & 199B

      1. Create and download the NEUROSC 198B or 199B contract via MyUCLA.
        • Under “Project Description,” include a brief description of what your continued research in the lab will entail that quarter.
        • Under “Evidence,” write “A final report or Honors thesis and Neuroscience Poster Day presentation”.
      2. Obtain your faculty mentor’s signature on the MyUCLA course contract.
      3. Submit the MyUCLA course contract as one PDF submission to the Bruin Learn website by 4PM PST on Friday of Week 1.

        NEUROSC 199C

        1. Create and download the NEUROSC 199C contract via MyUCLA.
        2. Complete the NEUROSC 199C Faculty Sponsor Form.
        3. Obtain your faculty mentor’s signature on the MyUCLA course contract and Faculty Sponsor Form.
        4. Submit the MyUCLA course contract and Faculty Sponsor Form as one PDF submission to the Bruin Learn website by 4PM PST on Friday of Week 1.

        Quarterly Deadlines

        A report is due by 4PM on Friday of Finals Week during the quarter that a student is enrolled in any of the Neuroscience contract courses. Students will submit a status report for NEUROSC 198A/199A, a final report for NEUROSC 199B/199C, and an Honors thesis for NEUROSC 198B.

        Please click here for report directions.