Top 15 Global Universities for Neuroscience

See which schools are rated best for their research on the brain and behavior.

A degree in neuroscience can lead to work in medicine, academia, public policy, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, pharmacy and research. Neuroscience departments in universities around the world are working to deepen understanding of brain function, human behavior, mental processes, the nervous system, neurological disease and mental health. Fostering interdisciplinary research and collaboration, they shape not only the next generation of neuroscientists, but graduates who will go on to pursue careers as neuropsychologists, doctors, genetic counselors, forensic pathologists, social workers and neuroimaging technicians. Learn more about the top 15 Best Global Universities for Neuroscience and Behavior, as ranked by U.S. News based on academic research performance in this subject area.

15. Karolinska Institutet in Sweden

Location: Stockholm, Sweden

Best Global Universities overall rank: 52 (tie)

Neuroscience collaborations and affiliated centers at Karolinska Institutet include the Centre for Cluster Headache, Centre for Trauma Research, International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility, the Ming Wai Lau Centre for Reparative Medicine and the StratNeuro, which integrates research in clinical and basic neurosciences to advance prevention and treatment of disease from brain disorders, according to the university’s website.

14. University of Toronto in Canada

Location: Toronto, Canada

Best Global Universities overall rank: 16 (tie)

Neuroscience students at the University of Toronto explore knowledge and techniques from anatomy, molecular biology, pharmacology, biochemistry, psychology and physiology, along with leading-edge technologies. UToronto’s research-intensive specialist program includes a co-op option, where students get paid experience and professional connections through four-month work terms.

13. University of California–Los Angeles

Location: Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 13

University of California–Los Angeles has more than 200 faculty across five schools conducting research on the brain, perception, cognition and neurological disease. Neuroscience students can join research with individual faculty members and many “have contributed significantly and substantially to independent research projects in faculty laboratories,” according to UCLA’s website.

12. University of California, San Diego

Location: San Diego, California, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 21 (tie)

The Department of Neurosciences at the University of California, San Diego “spans translational neurosciences and the clinical practice of Adult and Child Neurology,” according to the school, encouraging cross-disciplinary collaborative research. Combining research with clinical care, outreach and education, its centers and programs include the Stroke Center, Center for Neural Repair, Multiple Sclerosis Center and ALS Center.

11. Yale University

Location: New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 9

Yale University‘s Wu Tsai Institute, established in 2021 after a donation from philanthropist couple Joseph C. and Clara Wu Tsai, promotes interdisciplinary collaboration on academic projects across three research pillars: neurodevelopment and plasticity; neurocognition and behavior; and neurocomputation and machine intelligence. All Yale students can get involved with institute research. The neuroscience department’s current interdisciplinary areas include the development and function of the cerebral cortex, neuronal cell biology, sensory processing and neurodegeneration.

10. Washington University in St. Louis

Location: St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 31

The neuroscience department at Washington University in St. Louis has more than 40 joint faculty members and promotes open science and collaboration, according to the department’s website. WashU’s Jeffrey T. Fort Neuroscience Research Building brings together more than 100 research teams, including experts in neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry, neuroscience and anesthesiology.

9. Columbia University

Location: New York, New York, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 10

Several faculty members in Columbia University‘s neuroscience department are co-authors of the globally popular textbook “Principles of Neural Science” and one is a Nobel Prize winner. With other investigators, the department is part of Columbia’s “vision of a cross-disciplinary axis for research on the science of mind” in the Jerome L. Greene Science Center, according to the university’s website.

8. University of Pennsylvania

Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 15

Students in the University of Pennsylvania‘s undergraduate neuroscience program are encouraged to get involved in research early, and undergraduates may work with professors who study neuroscience in the schools of arts and sciences, medicine, dentistry, and veterinary medicine. UPenn’s Mahoney Institute of Neurological Sciences promotes collaboration and involves faculty and students in outreach programs, and its Neurolab offers 10 stations for electrophysiological experiments.

7. University of Oxford

Location: Oxford, United Kingdom

Best Global Universities overall rank: 4

The University of Oxford claims a history of neuroscience research dating back to the 17th century. Today, its neuroscience community includes more than 200 principal investigators. Researchers collaborate with other universities, industries, policymakers and health care providers to achieve practical solutions. Oxford brings together cellular-level research, systems-level research and disease-focused studies “to achieve an unparalleled understanding of brain function and disease,” according to its website.

6. Johns Hopkins University

Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 14

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University‘s Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute aim to synthesize knowledge in neuroscience, computational data science and engineering to deepen understanding of the brain. The institute focuses on designing new tools for investigating the mind, conducting neurological experiments and analyzing test results. Underrepresented students can complete the Johns Hopkins Career, Academic and Research Experiences for Students Summer Symposium — a pathway to graduate study in neuroscience.

5. University College London

Location: London, England, U.K.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 7

Undergraduate neuroscience students at University College London who achieve strong grades the first two years can transfer into the university’s master’s program. Students who choose this route study for four years, while those who solely take undergraduate classes are in school three years. The department aims to help all students develop outstanding data analysis, research and problem-solving skills.

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 2

Massachusetts Institute of Technology‘s Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences’ mission is “to reverse engineer the brain in order to understand the mind” and train a new generation of scientific leaders, according to its website. MIT’s Building 46 is among the world’s largest neuroscience research facilities, with about 700 students, postdocs, faculty and staff, and two influential research institutes: the McGovern Institute for Brain Research and the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory.

3. Stanford University

Location: Stanford, California, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 3

Research at Stanford University‘s Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute focuses on three areas: NeuroDiscovery, in which scientists use cutting-edge techniques to investigate the inner workings of the brain; NeuroHealth, where discoveries are translated into treatments; and NeuroEngineering, which develops new tools and technologies to “enable as yet unimagined discoveries” and repair and eventually augment the brain, according to the school’s website.

2. University of California–San Francisco

Location: San Francisco, California, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 16 (tie)

University of California–San Francisco neuroscience doctoral students rotate through laboratories in various fields of neuroscience so they can make informed decisions about their thesis research. Researchers and physicians at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences work together to solve the brain’s greatest challenges and reduce suffering from various diseases. UCSF professor David Julius was a co-recipient of the 2021 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for revelations about pain.

1. Harvard University

Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.

Best Global Universities overall rank: 1

Harvard University undergraduates can pursue a neuroscience concentration with tracks in neurobiology; mind, brain and behavior; or computational neuro, where students learn to use math and computer science to evaluate brain signals. Students can also pursue a joint concentration. Since 2014, the Harvard Brain Science Initiative has promoted cross-campus and interdisciplinary connections among the university’s neuroscientists and its affiliated hospitals.

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Here are the top 15 global universities for neuroscience and behavior:

1. Harvard University

2. University of California–San Francisco

3. Stanford University

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

5. University College London

6. Johns Hopkins University

7. University of Oxford

8. University of Pennsylvania

9. Columbia University

10. Washington University in St. Louis

11. Yale University