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The Founding College of the University of Toronto
Plastic Skull & Brain

Cognitive Science

“Learn to question what you think…”
Jesse Berlin, Cognitive Science Alumnus

Our program seeks an understanding of perception, language, reasoning and consciousness by drawing on work in computer science, linguistics, human biology, philosophy and psychology.

Outside all the boxes

Our students are encouraged to excel in the field’s sub-disciplines, but are also rewarded for thinking outside of these disciplinary boxes to synthesize their learning and enrich their understanding. As alumnus Jesse Berlin observed, “Cognitive Science is about the hard problems of tomorrow and today. It's where you learn to question not only what you think and how you think, but also what thinking is. It's utterly fascinating."

Overhead view of several students with laptops

Diverse Curriculum

In addition to dedicated Cognitive Science courses, our curriculum comprises a blend of mind-related courses in Computer Science, Human Biology, Linguistics, Philosophy, and Psychology.

Several microscopes on a black table

Flexible Programs

Cog Sci is offered as either an arts or science major, each with a choice of streams tailored to your intellectual and career interests. Arts streams include Perception and Attention, Language and Cognition or Thinking and Reasoning; Science streams include Computational Cognition or Cognition and the Brain.

Aerial view of students wearing graduation caps

An Expanding Field

The Cognitive Science program is fast-growing -- enrolment is up 76 per cent since 2009! We strive to enhance scholarship and travel opportunities for students and to foster outreach programming such as our biennial undergraduate conference, “Interdisciplinary Symposium on the Mind.”

News

Faculty
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Canadian Studies
Cognitive Science
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Student Life
Students, staff, faculty and family rejoiced at the annual UC Student Leadership Awards earlier this term. Friends and family of award recipients gathered at the college with their nominators to celebrate our community's young leaders over delicious food and beverages. 
2025 UCSLA award recipients in audience
Alumni
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Announcements
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The new building will bring together the Centre for Indigenous Studies, First Nations House Indigenous Student Services and the Office of Indigenous Initiatives
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Faculty
Cognitive Science
Karina Vold, an assistant professor in UC's Cognitive Science program, says the rapid development of AI systems have left both philosophers and computer scientists grappling with difficult questions.
Headshot of Karina Vold
Alumni
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Cognitive Science
UC in the News
University College student Yuehang (Peter) Ma won the Brian Mulroney Award, one of the 2025 Undergraduate Awards of Excellence in Economics. Faculty member Funké Aladejebi was recently awarded the 2024 Journalistic Excellence award in Print by the Canadian Ethnic Media Association. Professor Emerita Pia Kleber recently hosted several guests for a tea ceremony in the college. Alum Aiden Gomez’s (BSc 2018 UC) startup Cohere was listed as one of the top 10 startups to watch at this year’s Entrepreneurship Week. UC alumnus Ilya Sutskever (BSc 2005 UC) who co-founded OpenAI and Safe Superintelligence Inc. will be recognized with a U of T honorary degree this spring.
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Student Initiatives

Robot with Human face and exposed Components in skull

All of our students are entitled to membership with CASA (Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence Students’ Association). CASA aims to bring together anyone in the U of T community interested in the study of the mind.

Robot hands playing piano

The University of Toronto Interdisciplinary Symposium on the Mind (UTism) is a biennial conference offered by CASA to explore an array of topics in cognitive science and related disciplines.