The Graduate Program in Psychobiology originated in 1971 as a research area in Psychopharmacology linked to the Graduate Program in Pharmacology at the Escola Paulista de Medicina, under the leadership of Prof. Elisaldo Carlini. In 1987, the Brazilian agency that regulates graduate programs (CAPES) approved the independence of the Graduate Program in Psychobiology linked to the Department of Psychobiology of the same Institution (now Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP / Escola Paulista de Medicina). Since 2007 the program has received the highest possible rating as a Program of Excellence by CAPES.