Rachel Oren, BA

Rachel is a second year graduate student in the Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program.

Her first introduction to research came during high school, when her interest in genetics led her to work in the laboratory of Dr. Stephan Zuchner at the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami.

She continued to pursue research in the biological sciences during her undergraduate studies at Williams College. Under the supervision of Dr. Lauren Williamson, she studied the role of neuroimmunology in health and disease. During her senior year, Rachel conducted independent research on the effect of stress on development and the use of SSRIs during adolescence.

After graduating with a double major in Biology and Psychology, with a concentration in Neuroscience, Rachel moved to Boston to work in the labs of Drs. Gregory Crosby and Deborah Culley at Brigham and Women's Hospital as a research assistant. There, she used a combination of both animal models and clinical studies to study the effect of anesthesia and surgery on cognition, with a focus on older populations.

At Yale, Rachel aims to conduct research broadly related to the neurobiological basis of psychiatric illness. After completing her rotations, Rachel joined the labs of Dr. Jessica Cardin and Dr. Michael Higley, where she used mesoscopic imaging to investigate the effect of a psychotomimetic dose of ketamine on state-dependent cortical activity and functional connectivity.