Institute for Child Development

Below is a list of questions frequently asked by undergraduates.

What is the difference between CUTE and CULD?

• CUTE is a full day school for children aged 2-12 with developmental disabilities and/or severe behavior problems. CUTE tutors must be available for 6-8 hours per week between the hours of 9 AM and 2 PM. CUTE tutors work with children of varying levels on communication skills.
• CULD is an after school program for typically developing children aged 5-12 who have reading difficulties. CULD tutors must be available from 3:30 - 6:00 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. CULD tutors work with children on reading skills.

What does being a Research Assistant at ICD involve?

• Research assistants (Assessment & Evaluation) work on a variety of research projects for one or both units. Duties vary, but typically include running studies with children, entering data, scoring data and helping with background research.

What will I get out of participating at ICD?

• Being an undergraduate at the Institute for Child Development is a great opportunity to get experience for graduate school or for jobs after graduation.
• Students interested in clinical psychology, school psychology, educational psychology, developmental psychology, behavioral psychology, special education, speech pathology, social work, and teaching are especially encouraged to participate.
• The wide range of class choices available allows a student to tailor an experience that is most beneficial to his or her goals.
• Students looking primarily for hands-on experience with kids can be tutors on CUTE or CULD (track or non-track).
• Students looking for a combination of research and hands-on experience can be research assistants who start in 355.
• Students interested in just research can take multiple semesters of 391. A combination of track and non-track classes can be taken if a student would like a specific combination of experiences.

Will I get research credit for participating at the Institute?

• Students who are looking for research experience for graduate school are encouraged to participate in the Assessment and Evaluation (research) classes. Letters of recommendation from the Institute for Child Development will reflect the student’s research experience.

How much time will participating at the ICD take?

• Participation in any class at the Institute takes about eight to 10 hours per week. The hours may be distributed in a variety of ways depending on the course you are taking: direct work with children, preparation for work with children, studying, seminar, research, training, projects, reading etc.

Can I just volunteer and not sign up for a class?

• No. The only exception that will be made is for part-time employment over the summer.

How do I get trained?

• Everyone MUST attend a mandatory training weekend to participate in courses (other than PSYC 392) at the Institute.
• The training weekend is typically the first weekend after classes begin. If you are unable to attend the training weekend for any reason, you will have to wait until another semester to participate.

How do I find out if I am accepted and how do I register?

• Brief interviews are conducted during the information session. Acceptances are typically posted within a week of your interview.
• If you have been accepted, please attend the first seminar on the first Monday of the semester at 6:00 PM at the Institute for Child Development. At that meeting, you will fill out an independent registration form and receive a syllabus along with other materials. You cannot sign up for any Institute class before this time.