PSYCH 420An Introduction to Computational Neuroscience Methods
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Arts
- Subject
- Psychology
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 3 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
This course gives students with either a limited computational or psychology background a gentle introduction to computational neuroscience. The course involves a series of lectures and computational exercises and concludes with an in-class presentation. Programming exercises can be completed with either Excel or a computer language of the student's choice.
Prerequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Earned a minimum Psychology major average of 74.0%
- Students must be in level 3A or higher
- Enrolled in H-Psychology (BA), or H-Psychology (BSc)
Antirequisites
None listed.
Leads to
No course lists it as a requisite.
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| SEM 001 | 8306 | 24 / 25 | F 11:30–14:20 |
Resources
Around the web
Found by uwloo’s link finder, which checks that each page names PSYCH 420.
- compNeuroIntro420: Notes and Code for the University of Waterloo Course PSYCH420 Course notes · github.com · by brittAnderson on GitHub Remove
- compNeuroIntro420: Notes and Code for the University of Waterloo Course PSYCH420 Course notes · github.com · by sizmailo on GitHub Remove
Reviewed on UW Flow
75% liked it67% easy100% useful
From 4 ratings and 1 comment on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
Easy to do well. However, I felt it was geared more towards CS students than psych students. Good course if you want to dabble in some programming.
Apr 2013 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
10 posts and comments in 7 threads mention PSYCH 420, October 2015 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Fall 2023
psych 420 1 point, 1 comment
u/LowPresentation3279: “if anyone has taken this class before, how was it? when has it typically been offered? uwflow didn’t provide much info”
Spring 2023
Any AI-related courses? Non-CS? 1 point, 5 comments
“hey there, just wondering if you all know of any AI related courses, that aren’t beginning with CS since I’m not a programmer. …”
u/Mencius_Axe: “Not quite AI, but PSYCH 420 Computational Neuroscience covers neural networks and related topics.”
Winter 2023
Which 2 course combos should I take: PSYCH 420 & PSYCH 353 vs PSYCH 458 & PSYCH 336? 1 point, 1 comment
u/Comrarius: “… Now, I really wanted to take PSYCH 420 and PSYCH 336 because I think I want to go to grad school and picking those courses sounds useful for that, but those 2 courses have a time conflict so I can't take them both. …”
u/Dizzysnowfire: “You need psych 363 to take psych 420.”
Spring 2017
Neuroscience 1 point, 4 comments
“Hi, are there any neuroscience courses that I can take related to bio/psych?”
u/laughing_river: “… -Kin 415: if you're interested in clinical neurology related to movement -PSYCH 420: introductionary material on doing computational neuroscience and a bit of modelling -BIOL 376: cellular neurophysiology, but prof is not the greatest -BIOL 377: systems neuroscience, same prof …”
Winter 2016
Is there any courses about brain studies, neuroscience and Cognitive Psychology ? 0 points, 2 comments
“I am a 1A CS student and I am deciding which courses to take ?”
u/AnIncredibleMetric: “… PSYCH 361 Evolutionary Psych (Not as much focus on Computational stuff though so this one might not be ideal) PSYCH 420 Introduction to Computational Neuroscience. …”
Planning on learning to really program this summer, advice? 11 points, 22 comments
“Hey guys, I am a 4A biology student. I started my degree in math-phys, but it was too instense for my 18 year old self. I did Math 136,235,237 and did relatively well and loved it. …”
u/AnIncredibleMetric: “… just learning to plug and play with SKLearn, but you'll still get some tools) Courses Psych 420, Biol 487 (Computational Neuroscience) 420 might be too light on math for you with your background, but you'll probably still find it interesting. …”
u/waterloo_hero_69: “I thought you were joking when you mentioned Psych 420... didn't think there was such a course, happy to be wrong lol”
Fall 2015
Hi, I am a bot. 75 points, 98 comments
“Hey everyone! After some discussion with mods, I think I am ready to be pushed live. I am a bot designed to provide relevant course information upon request. …”
u/BigCandyLuva: “[[PSYCH 420]]”
u/UWRedditBot: “PSYCH 420 LAB,SEM 0.5 | An Introduction to Computational Neuroscience Methods | Course ID: 013342 This course gives students with either a limited computational or psychology background a gentle introduction to computational neuroscience. …”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them