How do the on-campus childcare centers decide who gets a space?

Each center offers enrollment to current families first, giving returning children and siblings priority, followed by siblings of returning children (in a family with an active Harvard affiliation).

Preference is then given to according to a tier system established by the University:

1. Harvard faculty who are eligible for the ACCESS Program are considered Tier 1A and have priority enrollment on up to half of childcare center slots system-wide. 
2. Preference is then given to other benefits-eligible faculty, staff, and postdoctoral fellows on a regular Harvard payroll, and to active degree students, all of whom comprise Tier 1. 
3. Other affiliates who have an active Harvard ID number (HUID) but receive their salary and benefits from an entity other than Harvard University are considered Tier 2. 

Following these Tier 1 and Tier 2 assignments, slots are allocated to all others, including alumni and members of the local communities, generally considered in Tier 3. (Please note that sibling priority does not apply to Tier 3 families, which is to say families without a current, active Harvard affiliation.)

Note that for all tiers, affiliation status is determined for the time of childcare center enrollment, not the time of application: In order to be considered Tier 1, for example, you must be a benefits-eligible employee or a degree student as of the day your child starts care. For specific questions about your tier status, please email worklife@harvard.edu.