Parental, Family and Medical Leave for Graduate Students

Approved by the Graduate Council on March, 2010 
(Amended to raise leave to 6 weeks, January, 2011) 

  1. Petition for Part-time enrollment status: Graduate students must be enrolled full-time to receive stipend awards, but a graduate student who faces extenuating circumstances (serious health condition, issue with care of a family member, etc.) may petition to enroll in part-time status and continue to receive the full stipend award, for one semester only, for a situation that does not require a full leave of absence. The department or program may require the student to continue the service obligations that are linked to the stipend award while in part-time enrollment status. The student must be able to document the need for this request. 
  2. Parental Leave: Any student who receives a scholarship from the Graduate School is eligible for leave from their academic responsibilities for a period of 6 weeks in connection with the birth or adoption of a child. Either parent is eligible for parental leave. The student will be allowed to retain the stipend, tuition and other benefits during the leave period as well as remain in full-time enrollment status. It is the student’s responsibility to work with their instructors, mentor, and the Director of Graduate Studies to make arrangements to accommodate for missed lectures and service duties during the leave period. 
  3. Parental Leave Award Program: In order to provide an incentive for units to offer the same parental leave policy to graduate students who are funded by units other than the Graduate School, the following new award program is available:
Program name:Parental Leave Stipend Award for Departments
Goal:Provide a partial stipend for a graduate student to perform the service obligations of another graduate student who is on parental leave.
Eligibility: Graduate programs that have granted parental leave to a funded graduate student. The student who is taking parental leave must be allowed to retain the standard stipend while on leave.
Application Date: Applications will be accepted anytime.
Applicant: Department Chair.
Maximum award:Three weeks stipend support, pro-rated by the department’s standard G-12 stipend.
Program commitment:Graduate School will provide one-half of a graduate student stipend for 6 weeks to fund the student who is taking over the obligations of the student on parental leave. The Department, Program or Unit must also provide one-half of a stipend for 6 weeks.