About | Paris NeuroCourse

From the essentials to cutting edge techniques in optical imaging and electrophysiology

OPTICAL IMAGING AND ELECTROPHYSIOLOGICAL RECORDING IN NEUROSCIENCE

A 13-day residential course of lectures, demonstrations and practical work; a lectures-only option will be available online

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LECTURES AND PRACTICALS

Lectures and practicals held at the Campus Saint Germain of the UPCité, 45 Rue des Saints Peres, 75006 Paris, France. Three days of demonstrations and lab visits are run at the Ecole Normale Supérieure (IBENS), Paris brian Institute (ICM) and Vision Institute (IdV). World-expert lecturers and instructors come from Paris, France, Europe, the world.

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FEES

The course fee is expected to be around 2000€/1500€ per student with/without accommodation (depending on funding). Special arrangements exist for attending lectures only (including online for a modest fee). We can sometimes offer a stipend, which we typically reserve for participants from a low or middle-income country.

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HANDS-ON

The course consolidates basic knowledge of electronics and optics with practicals follower by all students. We then offer intensive hands-on experimental sessions over six days, with dedicated instructors and setups assembled with the latest equipment. Students choose 3 state of the art techniques over the 9 to 11 avilable.

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BOARD AND LODGING

Basic accomodation in a student residence should be available. Breakfast and lunch will be provided at the course (except Sundays). All students and lecturers are invited to the welcome and farewell banquets.

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DEMONSTRATIONS

There are numerous demonstrations of advanced techniques, including: high-speed two-photon imaging, in vitro and in vivo light-sheet imaging, wavefront engineering,.

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PARISIAN RESEARCH SOCIAL

Make the most of your stay in Paris to learn about its extensive research community and meet with local scientists to explore opportunities for collaboration, post-docs and careers. A social evening will be organised to connect interested students and researchers.

TESTIMONIALS

All the feedback from the 2026 class

The workshop truly creates an environment to thrive by starting with basics and working its way up to cutting-edge research techniques, all in a rather informal but still polite environment. Highly recommended!

The Paris Neuro course was an intense two-week experience with a rather complex approach to optics and electrophysiology. During this period you have the chance to interact with many experimental approaches that were used and/or still are being researched to tackle the many intrincacies of Neuroscience. It also offers the ability to improve your scientific approach towards your own projects and above all create networks that can be useful for your professional life. Besides the work, the integrated social events maintain the informal environment, which improves the quality of the above-mentioned caractheristics. It is a must if you are starting your PhD.

I think I never had a formation that was at the same time so intense and so good! A perfect mix of theory and practice with teachers able to make you feel their passion and commitment.

I learned many new things and consolidated what I already knew. The teachers were nice and patient, with a real envy to share what they know. I would definitely recommend the course to other PhD students in my lab

The Paris Spring School was honestly one of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had recently, both scientifically and personally. Beyond the incredible exposure to advanced neuroscience techniques, what I appreciated most was the atmosphere — being surrounded by people who are genuinely passionate about science and seeing how researchers actually think about experiments and scientific questions at the frontier of the field. It was also personally very inspiring. Some of the conversations I had with the faculty from ENS left a really lasting impression on me and reminded me why I wanted to pursue neuroscience research in the first place. The course also had a very concrete impact on my work: after returning to my lab, I’m now starting to establish both patch clamp electrophysiology and miniscope approaches in our group. And just as importantly, I met many wonderful people and made friendships that I genuinely think will stay with me far beyond the duration of the course..

These two weeks were rigorous and exhausting, but to have the opportunity to learn from so many professionals and make great friends was well worth it. The inclusion of practicals was helpful for solidifying concepts and learning some live troubleshooting techniques. I am excited to get back to lab and implement some of the things I learned!

These two weeks were intense but a rewarding experience. The program combined strong theoretical foundations with hands-on practical training. The instructors were knowledgeable and supportive, and the collaborative atmosphere made the course even more engaging. I came away with a much deeper understanding of the techniques and greater confidence in applying them to my own research.

A fountain of knowledge for anyone interested. Experienced teachers will guide you through optics and ephys until you’re confident in implementing advanced techniques.

Gilles Dewailly

Université Paris Cité

Luc Tamisier

Université Paris Cité

Hervé Suaudeau

Université Paris Cité