Policies & Procedures

Please submit a Pre-Travel Request form to your assigned Fiscal Assistant before your trip and a detailed Travel Expense report along with your receipts after your trip to ensure timely and accurate trip reimbursement. Be sure to have your PI pre-approval and form signatures.

• TRAVEL EXPENSES AND REIMBURSEMENTS INFORMATION:
  • https://blink.ucsd.edu/travel/travel-policy/index.html
• TRAVEL POLICY HIGHLIGHTS
  • University of California San Diego Business Travel Policy Highlights (APR 2024)
• TRAVEL INSURANCE:
  • https://www.ucop.edu/risk-services-travel/index.html
• A&A TRAVEL FORMS:
  • A&A Pre-Travel Aprroval Request Form
  • A&A Post-Travel Expense Report

Travel and procurement expenses are posted and processed through the Concur System. All travel and procurements must have an associated receipt. 

Purchasing can happen either through a Procurement card (Express Card) or for travel (T&E Card). Other changes are also possible through the UC San Diego Oracle system.

Please submit all reimbursements to your assigned Fiscal Assistant.

Pre-Award: 

The space used by the Astronomy & Astrophysics department is governed by the A&A Space Policy.

Space Requests

Space Requests for yourself or for a visitor should be submitted by a member or affiliate of the department through the Astronomy & Astrophysics Space Request Form. If possible, please give at least two week's notice of an upcoming need for space. If you need a space more urgently, do fill out the form but also email astroadmin@ucsd.edu directly to notify of the urgent need. You will get a response with a proposed space within 10 days. 

If you would like a change in the space allocated to you within the department, for any reason, please submit the request through the Astronomy & Astrophysics Space Transfer Request Form and a member of the department administration will respond to discuss the request.

A&A faculty, research members, graduate and undergraduate students can be issued keys for both office and laboratory space. This key policy is in place to safeguard and secure the assets of A&A including computers, equipment, supplies, etc. Keys will be issued to authorized personnel who are responsible to conduct research activities within the assigned space. Personnel should not loan keys to others nor should keys be duplicated. Doors must be locked upon leaving the area to maintain security.

Please email Anais Davalos for a key request with your specified PI.

Key Policy

1. The key request must be completed by the employee and signed by both the employee and their supervisor. A $15.00 key deposit will be collected and keys issued for office and laboratory space.
   
   
2. Building keys will not be issued since the Omnilock system is in place on the outside doors. The lock code can be provided by the MSO with a four digit key code to access the building after hours.
   
   
3. A $15.00 fee will be charged for all lost or misplaced keys and a new key will be issued.
   
   
4. When an employee separates from Astronomy and Astrophysics, all assigned keys must be returned. If a person transfers to another position within the University and possesses assigned keys that are no longer needed in the performance of their duties, these keys must be returned to the business office within five days. The key deposit will be reimbursed to the employee when keys have been returned. If an employee departs CASS and fails to return their keys then their deposit will be forfeited.

Astronomy and Astrophysics Department Generative AI (GenAI) Policy Fall 2024

Following campus AI and Academic Integrity guidelines (see also Generative AI and Using ChatGPT), each instructor/advisor will set GenAI policies for their classes and include a policy in their course syllabi, and for their research group, and will discuss expectations for GenAI usage for classwork and research with students and all research group members. For undergraduate student honors theses, graduate student qualifying exam reports, and PhD theses submitted to the department, GenAI tools can at most be used for light editing and, if so, must be cited appropriately following the AAS guidelines.

In general, the responsibility for any work product, including writing and coding, rests with the student or research group member. Beyond properly citing the usage of these tools, students and department members who use GenAI should always critically assess and reflect on its contribution to their work (see helpful resources below).

Some external AI-related academic integrity resources:

• AAAI reproducibility checklist for academic papers (for AI, but also applies more generally).
• Guidelines of how to use AI with integrity for academic work by Lamar University

The Department logos for major programmatic activities should use the official campus A&A logo. 

Download here: digital media A&A logo