Begin Your Neuromarketing Career at Tech

Many people are intrigued by this new buzz of neuromarketing, and they want to know one thing, “How soon can I start?”

The answer is sooner than you think. And we can help you get there.

I realized yesterday, after reading this post by Roger Dooley, that we’re not doing a good enough job telling the world about our programs at Texas Tech.

Our program’s not called “neuromarketing,” but if you want to understand the intersection of physiology, psychology, and marketing communication, there is no better place to do it.

Texas Tech offers both a M.A. and a Ph.D. in mass communications, and every graduate student has the opportunity to work in the psychophysiology lab.

We Have Fun, Too!

The lab is a vibrant mix of professors, doctoral students, master’s students, and undergraduate students. Every lab member is passionate about understanding the intersection of mind and media.

More importantly, we work hard while having fun.

We have a fully functioning state-of-the-art psychophysiology lab. We measure skin conductance, heart rate, facial electromyography, blood flow, and electroencephalogram (brain waves).

We also have an eye-tracking lab and a 20 person computer-based experimental lab.

Within the College of Mass Communications, we have five experimental scientists as professors, and we have hired a second psychophysiologist, who will begin in the fall. Two additional experimental scientists will start in the fall.

We have nationally recognized researchers in advertising and public relations.

Our national board of directors includes industry leaders from around the nation, and they travel to Tech every year. It’s an amazing opportunity to showcase our research to some of the top media and marketing professionals in the country.

Earn While You Learn

And perhaps the best part is that qualified graduate students have their tuition paid by the college, and they are paid a monthly stipend for helping in the lab or classroom. Ph.D. students earn more than master’s students, and right now doctoral students earn more than $18,000 a year plus paid tuition and health insurance.

Our graduate students are active members of the Society for Psychophysiological Research, the American Academy of Advertising, and the International Communication Association. The student research conducted here is well respected.

Beware of the Magnet

If you’ve followed neuromarketing, you’ve probably heard a lot about fMRI, or functional magnetic resonance imaging. Around here we just call it “the magnet.”

Be careful. There are a lot of naked emperors running around in new fMRI clothes right now. Come study at Tech, and you’ll know why most of the fMRI studies you’ve seen are silly and don’t really teach us anything. Come study at Tech, and you’ll know how to design a real neuromarketing study.

We’re designing our first fMRI study here, and we hope to begin data collection in 2009.

We have an amazing team here. But we’re a growing program, and we need more talented people to help make us better. I hope you’ll be one of those people.

Take a look at my lab page, and please contact me if you’re interested.

I’d also be happy to put you in touch with one or more of our amazing graduate students.

Usually university slogans are silly. But in this case, I believe Texas Tech’s is totally appropriate: “From here, it’s possible.”

Sound interesting? Have questions? Start by leaving a comment below.

Tagged as: Advertising, graduate study, neuromarketing, psychophysiology