Full-time care is available at the Early Childhood Education Center (ECEC) for children 3 months to 5 years old. The program is open to the children of full-time UC San Diego students, faculty and staff, as well as a limited number of non-UC San Diego affiliates. ECEC currently has 210 children enrolled.
Our open-classroom format allows children to learn by doing – they initiate their own activities and take responsibility for completing them. This ability serves as the foundation for the lifelong learning skills needed for personal, academic and professional success.
ECEC is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the hallmark of a high-quality care and early education program.
You can pay monthly tuition online with a credit card using Single Sign-On. You will also need the invoice number and payment amount, shown on your monthly invoice. If you do not have your invoice, call our office at (858) 246-0900.
ECEC operates weekdays, 7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. year round, excluding university holidays.
An after-hours program is offered weekdays, 5-6 p.m. The after-hours program is available to a limited number of children whose parents cannot pick them up before 5 p.m. Only children age 18 months and older are eligible.
After-hours care is provided between 5-6 p.m.
Parents who do not pick up their children by 6 p.m. will be fined $10 for every 15-minute increment past 6 p.m.
In the rare event the after-hours program will be closed, parents will receive at least one week notice. On those days, parents who do not pick up their children by 5 p.m. will be fined $10 for every 15-minute increment past 5 p.m.
Monthly tuition fees include a nutritious breakfast, lunch and afternoon snack. Prices are slightly higher for non-UC San Diego affiliates. A family with more than one child enrolled will receive a 10 percent reduction on the younger child's tuition.
Faculty, staff and students who meet income guidelines may be eligible for state-subsidized child care. Students may also be eligible to receive tuition assistance for child care services through CCAMPIS, a U.S. Department of Education program.
See How to Apply for Childcare.
All applications are filed by the date received. Each child is then placed on a waiting list for the appropriate age group. When a vacancy occurs, a child on the waiting list for that age group is offered a spot in that classroom.
If your child reaches the cutoff age while on the waiting list for a classroom, we will move your child to the next age-appropriate list. Your child’s application is integrated into this list according to the date we received your original application. Families of UC San Diego students, faculty, and staff with children already enrolled at ECEC – and who do not receive subsidized care – receive priority enrollment. Children referred by Child Protective Services also receive priority on the subsidized care waiting list.
Parents or guardians must keep contact information current. If we are unable to reach you by phone or mail when an opening occurs, your child(ren) will be removed from the waiting list.
If you inquire about your child’s position on a waiting list, we can tell you only the estimated wait time for your child to be admitted.
Contact ECEC, (858) 246-0900, 7:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. weekdays.