Parental Support and Relief Policy for Graduate Students in Ph.D. Programs
 
Date:   April 20, 2007
To:      Students and Faculty in the Graduate School
            of Arts and Sciences
From: Andrew D. Hamilton, Jon Butler
Re:     Parental Support and Relief Policy for
           Graduate Students in Ph.D. Programs

Today we are pleased to announce new parental support and relief policies to assist full-time Ph.D. students in years one through six when they become parents. The new policies are briefly described below. They will be funded by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and will take effect July 1, 2007.

New parenthood at the birth or adoption of a child substantially affects the ability of doctoral students to meet academic and professional obligations. The constraints introduced by becoming a parent while enrolled in a Ph.D. program also have long-term career effects. Recognizing this fact, the new policies described below are intended to extend new work and life policies that support the intersecting personal and professional lives of graduate students at Yale.

Ph.D. students who wish to suspend their academic responsibilities because of the birth or adoption of a child may request parental support and relief during or following the semester in which the birth or adoption occurs. For the whole of the semester in which the support and relief are requested, students remain registered, receive the full financial aid package as specified in their letter of admission, and will have departmental academic expectations modified to best suit the specific situation. The precise nature of the academic responsibilities undertaken or suspended during this period should be a matter of consultation between the advisor, the student, and the Graduate School, with the understanding that students are entitled to full relief for at least an eight-week period. The relief from academic responsibilities is not a leave, but Ph.D. students who have used the parental support and relief policy may receive an additional eight weeks of stipend funded by the Graduate School at the end of the fifth year. Additionally, their academic clock will stop for one semester, which will effectively add an additional semester of time towards their degree at the end of what otherwise would have been the student's sixth year. The parental support and relief policy will be administered by the associate deans of the Graduate School. The appropriate associate dean should be contacted four months prior to the anticipated start of the relief.

Graduate students in terminal MA/MS programs who wish to suspend their academic responsibilities because of the birth or adoption of a child should meet with their associate dean, who will help accommodate the students' program responsibilities when the birth or adoption occur.