Waitlist Priorities

The IDP Waitlist Priorities Summary

UCLA DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY

INFANT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Waitlist Priorities 

Qualified applications to the Infant Development Program will be assigned to one of the following four groups:

1. Top Priority: children of full-time ladder faculty in the Psychology department
   1. Recruitment and retention cases as specified by the chair of the Psychology Department
   2. Others
2. Second Priority: children of other Psychology employees with full-time paid positions in the Psychology Department. Full-time commitment is determined by a parent-candidate’s recent record of service to the department and current plans. This category includes career staff, non-ladder faculty, and non-career staff (50% split appointment). Within this category, priority will be assigned according to the following criteria:
   1. First, currently having a sibling enrolled in the IDP;
   2. Second, contribution to the Psychology department;
   3. Third, position on the wait list.
3. Third Partnership Priority: Departments who pay the IDP subsidy for top priority consideration will be given the next available slot after the Psychology Dept. families have been accommodated, and through regular attrition, for a child that they select. Families should understand that this is a training and research facility.
4. Fourth Priority: full-time Psychology graduate students and post-doctoral scholars, concurrent siblings enrolled in IDP.
5. Fifth Priority: children of full-time UCLA ladder faculty outside the Psychology department, and part-time (less than a 100% appointment) paid psychology staff and lecturers who make a substantial contribution to the Psychology department. Priority within this category is determined by:
   1. First, currently having a sibling enrolled in the IDP;
   2. Second, ladder faculty members who have appointments in Psychology and make a substantial contribution to the Psychology department (joint 0% time)
   3. Third, position on the wait list.
   4. The Director of the IDP will consult with the IDP Advisory Committee to determine on a case-by-case basis whether an applicant makes a substantial contribution to the Psychology Department.
6. Sixth Priority: children of other UCLA employees (e.g., staff, non-ladder academic appointments, postdoctoral students and postgraduate scholars outside of Psychology) and undergraduate students
   1. First, currently having a sibling enrolled in the IDP;
   2. Second, full-time employees and students;
   3. Third, part-time (less than 100% appointment) employees and students;
   4. Fourth, position on the wait list.
7. Seventh Priority: grandchildren of current UCLA Psychology faculty, staff, and students. Priority within this category will be assigned according to the guidelines set forth above in categories I through IV, in their entirety:
   1. First, grandchildren of full-time ladder faculty in the Psychology department;
   2. Second, grandchildren of individuals with full-time paid positions in the Psychology department and full-time Psychology graduate students.

Six general policies that apply to all waitlist categories:

1. Parents are eligible to submit an application when a pregnancy is confirmed or when adoption proceedings have begun.
2. For all categories, the parent-candidate must be able to demonstrate that he/she is able to make at least a one-year commitment to the IDP from the time that the child is enrolled. The parent must show that he/she is able to (and reasonably expects to) maintain the affiliation that made it possible for his/her child to be admitted to the IDP. This is true for all categories, such as post-doctoral scholars, non-ladder faculty, lecturers, and other non-career staff, whether they are employed on a part-time or a full-time basis. Each year parents will be required to provide verification that they are maintaining the affiliation which made it possible for their child to be admitted to the IDP.
3. Full-time positions at the IDP are intended primarily for the children of parents who either are employed full-time by the university or are full-time students at UCLA. Full-time UCLA employees and full-time Psychology graduate students therefore have priority for full-time positions, regardless of the part-time parent-candidate’s position on the wait list.
4. Parents who currently hold part-time positions at the IDP, and who qualify for and would like to be offered full-time slots, retain their position on the regular wait list for a full-time opening, according to the policies described here (i.e., parents who currently hold a position at IDP do not automatically have priority for another opening). Parents who hold part-time positions will only be eligible and contacted for full-time openings at the site of their current enrollment (i.e. Blue Room or Gold Room). All enrollments should be considered permanent placements at the site in order to provide stability and consistency for all children at the IDP. 
5. Within a category, there will be discretion based on achieving a balanced age, gender, and ethnic mix among children enrolled in the IDP.
6. Parents will only be offered the type(s) of position(s) that they have indicated they desire on their IDP application (i.e., full-time, 2-day, 3-day). If a parent turns down an offer of a position, the parent will be given a choice to remain on the waitlist or to have the candidate’s name removed. If the parent chooses to remain on the waitlist, the candidate’s name is placed at the bottom of the list for that priority category (I, II, III, or IV). Exemptions to this policy are cases in which parents have been offered a position that will become available before the child is 3 months old. In that case, parents may choose to remain in the same place on the waitlist until they are offered another position that becomes available at a time when their child is at least 3 months old.