The University of California, Merced, will celebrate the accomplishments of more than 1,500 students during its Spring 2025 Commencement ceremonies, to be held May 16 -18 on the UC Merced Recreation Field. The ceremonies will recognize graduates from all academic schools over three days of celebration.
The festivities begin at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 16, with the Graduate Division ceremony, honoring 120 students receiving master's and doctoral degrees.
On Saturday, May 17 at 9 a.m., the School of Engineering and the School of Natural Sciences will jointly recognize 600 graduating students. Lucia Barboza, a first-generation computer science and engineering major from Delhi, will be the student speaker. Barboza was a web developer intern for UC Merced's Valley Institute for Sustainability and Technology (VISTA). Through participation in the UCDC Program, she worked with the American Historical Association in Washington, D.C., focusing on efficient legislative tracking and website management. She also completed two software engineering internships with Salesforce, leading to a full-time role at the company after graduation. Barboza plans to pursue a master's degree in cybersecurity.
The final ceremony, on Sunday, May 18 at 9 a.m., will celebrate 800 students from the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts. Maya Manesh, a double major in cognitive science and sociology from Dublin, Calif., will address graduates. While at UC Merced, she served as treasurer and public relations and outreach officer of the Cognitive Science Student Association, as vice president of the Sociology Club, as vice president of operations for Kappa Kappa Gamma, and as an academic scholar in the Fiat Lux Scholars Program. She performed undergraduate research in Professor Colin Holbrook's EvoLab and received the Abrescy-Kranich Library Award for Undergraduate Research Excellence. Manesh was also awarded a University of California Education Abroad Program Global Scholarship to study abroad in Italy in 2024. After graduation, she plans to become a college advisor to help increase accessibility to higher education.
All commencement ceremonies will be held outdoors, and guests are encouraged to arrive early. Attendees should allow at least 30 minutes for parking, walking to the venue and ticket scanning. Guest seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, and all guests must be seated prior to the beginning of the processional to ensure a smooth and respectful experience for all in attendance.
Accessible parking will be available for vehicles displaying a valid ADA placard or sticker. Security measures will be in place at all ceremonies. All guests will pass through metal detectors upon entry, and some may be subject to additional screening and bag checks.
To ensure a safe and respectful environment, the following items are strictly prohibited at the commencement venue:
- Air horns, beach balls, signs, umbrellas, or other items that may obstruct views or cause distractions
- Balloons or inflatables of any kind
- Alcohol
- Any type of smoking or tobacco products
- Illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia
- Weapons of any kind, including firearms and knives
- Drones (UAS - Unmanned Aircraft Systems) or other model aircraft
- Animals, except for service animals
- Backpacks (diaper bags and medical necessity bags are allowed)
For additional details about the ceremonies, parking, accessibility and security guidelines, guests are encouraged to visit the commencement webpage. For those unable to attend commencement ceremonies in person, a livestream of each ceremony will be available online.
Public Information Officer
