In First Person: Tips to Survive and Excel as a Woman in Neuroscience

Sheena Josselyn is a senior scientist in the neurosciences and mental health program at The Hospital for Sick Children and professor in psychology and physiology at the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Toronto. Sheena’s current research focus studies how information is encoded stored and used in the brain, primarily using mouse models. She received her Bachelor’s Degree at Queen’s University at Kingston and her PhD at the University of Toronto which are both located in Canada. Her previous position being a Research Associate in the Department of Neurobiology at UCLA and prior to that she worked in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine.

Susan Amara, PhD, is currently scientific director of the National Institute of Mental Health Intramural Research Program. She has previously held faculty positions at Yale University School of Medicine, at the Vollum Institute in Portland Oregon, as chair of neurobiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Work in her laboratory has examined the impact of psychostimulant and antidepressant drugs on the signaling properties and acute regulation of biogenic amine transporters. Her group has also addressed the structure, physiology, and regulation of glutamate transporters. She received her BS in biological sciences from Stanford University and her PhD in physiology and pharmacology from the University of California, San Diego.