Parental Leave of Absence

If you want or need to pause your studies temporarily to care for children, you can request a parental leave of absence by completing the change of status form, indicating “parental” in the text box, and returning it to your department/DGS for signing. 

If you are on a Yale-sponsored visa, you should reach out to OISS to see how a leave will affect your immigration status.

Please note that parental leave is different from the Graduate School’s Parental Relief policy, which provides PhD students becoming parents with one semester of support while allowing them to remain registered full time—either in the semester in which a child arrives, or the semester immediately following a birth or adoption.

The full set of official policies governing leaves of absence can be found in the Graduate School’s Programs and Policies Bulletin. 

Health Coverage

GSAS students taking parental leave may enroll in Yale Health student affiliate coverage. PhD students on a parental leave will receive a health award to cover the cost of affiliate coverage for the semester in which the leave begins. In addition, if you extend your medical leave for a second term as a PhD student you can retain your coverage for one additional semester. PhD students also remain eligible for the Family Support Subsidy in the semester in which the leave begins, but not beyond.

Returning from Parental Leave 

Students may only return from leave at the start of each term. Occasionally, PhD students may be able to return on June 1 with the permission of their DGS and the Graduate School. It’s essential that you complete your return request early, though, so that your registration and return to Yale student health coverage can be processed in time. 

To return to full-time studies, you should email your DGS and GSASadministrativedean@yale.edu to inform us of your plans six weeks prior to the beginning of the semester in which you expect to return. The Graduate School will approve your return via a formal approval email.

Extending Parental Leave

If you are on a parental leave and have one or more leave semesters still available to use, you can extend your leave by emailing your DGS and GSASadministrativedean@yale.edu six weeks prior to the expiration of your leave to request an extension.