Office of Professional & Continuing Education

Not many people have seen their own brain, much less studied their brain. However, high school students will have the opportunity of a lifetime this summer when the Department of Psychological Sciences in the College of Liberal Arts hosts their annual Auburn University Brain Camp.

Brain Camp is a fun, interactive camp for young leaders who are rising juniors and seniors in high school, or about to enter their freshman year of college to get hands-on experience using advanced technology and to learn from distinguished professors in the field of neuroscience. Students will be led by two faculty members in the Department of Psychological Sciences – Jeff Katz, Ph.D. (Mike and Leann Rowe Endowed Professor), and Jen Robinson, Ph.D., (Alumni Professor), and high school psychology teacher, Ms. Kathy Dodgen.

Students will practice different techniques used by neuroscientists, such as Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), which allows for the mapping of the brain’s neural tracks and assists in constructing 3-D replicas of the brain. The most memorable experience will be an introduction to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The Department of Psychological Sciences partners with the Auburn University MRI Research Center to give each student* the chance to have their brain scanned. Students who participate in the scanning will have a chance to map their own brain!

Pending funding decisions, scholarships may be available to offset the costs of the camp.

*= Participants and their parents will have to complete an MRI safety screening form in order to participate in the brain scanning. Students who have braces or permanent retainers will not be eligible to have their brain scanned.

Camp participants will experience campus-life while residing in Auburn's resident dormitories, eating at campus dining facilities, and enjoying evening social and recreational activities. Participants will have 24/7 counselor supervision.