GENERAL INFO AND POLICIES FOR ALL STUDENTS
Enrollment
Students must be enrolled in 12 units of graduate level courses each academic quarter (not including summers). All students must enroll in one of the two following courses with their mentor(s) each quarter:
- Students who have not advanced to candidacy: MOL BIO 596 – Directed Individual Research
- Students who have advanced to candidacy MOL BIO 599 – PhD Dissertation Research and Writing
MOL BIO 596 and 599 are variable unit courses. Students enroll in however many units are needed to reach the 12 unit minimum. For example, a first-year student taking 8 units of lectures/seminars should enroll in 4 units of MOL BIO 596 (8 + 4 = 12 units total). A fifth-year student who is not taking any other courses should enroll in 12 units of MOL BIO 599 only.
Annual and Term Student Fees are published on the Registrar’s Office website. Fees for the upcoming academic year are typically published around July 1.
Students can review their tuition and fees on BruinBill.
Tuition and fees are fully covered through GSR or TA fee remissions, traineeships, fellowships, grants, and stipends, and are paid directly to the University. No action is required on the student’s behalf to pay tuition.
Health Insurance
Health Insurance is mandatory for all UCLA registered students. All students are automatically enrolled in UC Student Health Insurance Plan (UC SHIP) and may waive enrollment if they already have health insurance. UCSHIP is a systemwide plan providing enhanced health benefits to all enrolled students.
UC SHIP premiums are included in the quarterly tuition and fees, and will therefore be covered through fee remissions.
Graduating students’ health insurance will end at the end of the quarter that they graduate. For example, if you file your dissertation in spring quarter, UC SHIP coverage will terminate at the end of spring quarter.
myIDP
Individual Development Plans (IDPs) provide a structure to identify career goals, milestones, and professional development needs followed by creation of a timeline for achieving career objectives. A GPB-specific online IDP is available to all students throughout all years of training
to reflect on short term and long-term goals, and to provide a record of milestones as they progress through the program. Students are encouraged to update their IDP at least once annually, submit it electronically for review, and schedule formal meetings with their mentor to review progress and plan future goals. The MBIDP strongly recommends create and discuss the IDP with their mentors on an annual basis.
Financial Support
Students making satisfactory academic progress towards their degree will receive full financial support each quarter in the form of salary/stipend, tuition, health insurance, and, if applicable, non-resident supplemental tuition (NRST). MBIDP students will receive full financial support for five years.
Predoctoral Training Grants and Fellowships
Students are encouraged to apply for external funding. When applying, students will work with their mentor and their mentor’s funding team to prepare and submit their application materials. For additional writing assistance, students are encouraged to utilize the Graduate Writing Center. The GWC publishes resources online and hosts workshops throughout the year on preparing grant and fellowship applications. The MBIDP is not directly involved in student training grant and fellowship proposal applications.
Additional Employment and Internships
Additional UCLA Employment
Graduate students may only be employed over 50% time with approval from the student’s mentor, Home Area Director, and MBIDP Chair. During the academic year, employment between 50-75% time requires completion of a UCLA work authorization form, which the student must request from the Student Affairs Officer. A work authorization form is not required during the summer.
International students are also limited by federal regulations to 50% time employment. International students must consult with the Dashew Center regarding the details of their visa restrictions.
Employment outside UCLA
The MBIDP is a full time PhD program. Making academic progress should be all students’ priority. Employment outside UCLA cannot take precedence over a student’s academics, regular lab work, or UCLA employment (e.g. GSR, TA, etc.). If warranted, mentors may issue an Unsatisfactory “U” grade for the quarter and/or follow the discipline procedures for GSRs as outlined by the CBA.
Internships
An internship is defined as a temporary work experience in lieu of regular lab work that provides practical skills and career development. Internships serve as a bridge between academic learning and professional careers, allowing students to gain hands-on experience, build networks, and enhance their CV’s.
Only students who have advanced to candidacy are eligible to participate in internships. Students must receive approval from their PI and doctoral committee in order to apply for an internship. Students must receive approval from their Home Area Director and the MBIDP Chair in order to accept an internship if one is offered to them. Mentors may submit confidential comments to the Home Area Director, describing the student’s progress towards time-to-degree.
All requests for approval can be made by e-mail and should include details of the internship experience, time commitment, benefit, how the student’s research project will be impacted, and how the student’s degree progress and time-to-degree will be impacted. Requests should be submitted at least 1 month before any internship-related deadline (e.g. deadline to apply, deadline to accept offer, etc.)
Internships may be:
• unpaid, on-campus, OR
• paid or unpaid off-campus.
To avoid delaying time-to-degree, internships during the academic year may not exceed 10 hours per week unless the work is part of a formal collaboration between the student’s lab and an external partner. Summer internships may not exceed 12 weeks.
Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification
A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.0) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (note that some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of progress toward the degree, poor performance in core courses, etc. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.0) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department.
The Academic Disqualification procedure and process is detailed in the Division of Graduate Education’s Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study.
Academic Integrity
With its status as a world-class research institution, it is critical that the University uphold the highest standards of integrity both inside and outside the classroom. As a student and member of the UCLA community, you are expected to demonstrate integrity in all of your academic endeavors. Accordingly, when accusations of academic dishonesty occur, The Office of Student Conduct reviews and adjudicates alleged violations. Academic dishonesty, includes all forms of academic misconduct or research misconduct, including, but not limited to, cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, multiple submissions, facilitating academic dishonesty, and unauthorized collaboration.
The Student Code of Conduct is available online.
Leaves of Absence
Continuing graduate students in good standing (3.0 GPA or above) who have completed at least one term of UCLA graduate work may, with the support of their department and the approval of the Division of Graduate Education, be eligible for a leave of absence. Graduate students are allowed a maximum of three quarters of official leave of absence. Additional requests are reviewed in exceptional circumstances.
The Leave of Absence policy is detailed in the Division of Graduate Education’s Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study.
Withdrawal
Withdrawing from the University means discontinuing attendance in all courses in which students are enrolled. With approval of the Dean of Graduate Education, if a student is eligible for further registration in the University and is not under disciplinary disqualification, the student is entitled to a statement of honorable withdrawal; however, the Dean may attach comments to this statement.
The Leave of Absence policy is detailed in the Division of Graduate Education’s Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study.
Employment Verification
UCPath uses The Work Number® to provide automated employment and income verification for UC employees. It is widely known to mortgage lenders, banks, apartment complexes and others who may need to verify your employment or income. The Work Number® provides service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A self-verification of employment report can also be generated in UCPath.
Enrollment Verification
Proof of enrollment certifies registration (fee payment and enrollment status) and degrees earned to verify UCLA attendance. Proof of enrollment is available online.
