Summer Research Bootcamp
May 1-12, 2026
The Summer Research Bootcamp is a workshop series designed to support undergraduate and graduate students in building the skills needed to succeed in neuroscience research and beyond. This curriculum focuses on the 鈥渉idden鈥� aspects of academia, practical knowledge, and strategies that are often not formally taught in courses or within lab environments.
Throughout the week, sessions will cover three core themes: professional development, research skills, and technical skills. Topics include navigating academic and industry career paths, academic writing, reading and interpreting research, funding applications, and foundational coding and data analysis.
Sessions will be offered in a mix of formats, including interactive workshops, peer-led discussions, and skill-based training, with options to attend in-person or virtually. Whether you are just starting out or looking to strengthen your existing skillset, this series is designed to be accessible, practical, and directly relevant to your research journey.
This series is designed for undergraduate and graduate students in neuroscience but is open to all.
Curriculum
- How Research Actually Works: The Hidden Curriculum of Academia
Facilitator: Katen Kelly & Dr. Dawn Mackey
May 1, 10-11:30am
- Reading Papers Strategically & Managing Literature Overload
Facilitators: Katen Kelly & Natalie Wickett
May 4, 10-10:30am
- Open Science 101
Facilitator: Dr. Gracielle Higino
May 4, 10:30-11:30am
- Academic Writing When You're Stuck: From Blank Page to Draft
Facilitators: Katen Kelly & Cathlin J. Han
May 5, 10-11:30am
- Funding Applications 101: How Reviewers Think
Facilitator: Dr. Randy McIntosh
May 6, 10-11:30am
- CVs, Resumes, and Academic Identity
Facilitator: Dr. Alex Wiesman
May 7, 10-11:30am
- Technical Skills Workshop I
Facilitators: Dr. Sarah Faber, Dr. Santiago Flores, Dr. Jack Solomon
May 8, 10-11:30am (undergraduate) and 12:30-2pm (graduate)
- Technical Skills Workshop II
Facilitators: Dr. Sarah Faber, Dr. Santiago Flores, Dr. Jack Solomon
May 11, 10-11:30am (undergraduate) and 12:30-2pm (graduate)
- Imposter Syndrome, Rejection, and Burnout in Research
Facilitator: Katen Kelly
May 12, 10-11:30am
Requirements
All participants are asked to bring a laptop and have access to internet. Please email us at inn@sfu.ca if you are unable to meet these requirements.
Facilitators
Katen Kelly is a neuroscience PhD student whose research focuses on culturally appropriate approaches to Alzheimer鈥檚 disease and related dementias in Indigenous communities. Her work integrates sociocultural neuroscience with community-based methods to improve brain health equity and care.
Dr. Dawn Mackey is a Professor in the Department of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology (BPK) at SFU. She is also the Graduate Program Chair in BPK. Her research program aims to promote older adult mobility. She seeks to discover and implement new ways to help older adults stay physically active, mobile, socially connected, and independent and avoid debilitating falls and injuries.
Dr. Gracielle Higino is the Open Science Community Manager at SFU, where she supports initiatives that promote open, responsible and collaborative research practices. Her career was built around training strategy and mentorship on open science projects in Ecology and Evolution, programming languages and reproducible practices, advocacy for the open movement, and championing EDI principles in the computational research ecosystem.
Cathlin J. Han is a PhD student in the McIntosh lab in BPK. In her work, Cathlin uses a brain network modelling approach supported by the open-source platform The Virtual Brain to study Alzheimer鈥檚 disease and how neuronal senescence might be involved in its pathology.
Dr. Randy McIntosh is the director of the Institute of Neuroscience and Neurotechnology, and a professor in BPK. His work focuses on measuring and modelling brain dynamics in development and ageing. He also likes coffee and cheezies, though not at the same time.
Dr. Alex Wiesman is an Assistant Professor in BPK and the Scientific Director of SFU's biomedical imaging Core Facility. His research uses multimodal brain imaging to study age-related neurodegenerative diseases.
Dr. Sarah Faber is a postdoctoral fellow investigating musical behaviour in Alzheimer's disease. She develops novel methods for data capture and analysis across multiple modalities and enjoys statistics (really), coding, knitting, and a good cup of tea.
Dr. Santiago Flores is a postdoctoral researcher at 51社区黑料in the Laboratory for the Neurophysiology of Aging. His research combines MEG, MRI, and large-scale population data with machine learning to study brain aging, focusing on how functional dynamics shape cognitive decline and risk for neurodegenerative disorders.
Dr. Jack Solomon is a neuroscience postdoctoral fellow whose research focuses on understanding the evolution of neural networks over the adult lifespan. His work focuses on quantifying paired changes in brain structure and function that support healthy aging.