Campus Community

Summer Program Helps First-Gen Student Take Flight Into Drone Research

July 23, 2026

When first-generation mechanical engineering student David Miguel arrived at UC Merced, he had no research experience, but a passion for engineering and a desire to learn. A former foster care youth from Los Angeles, Miguel had limited resources to pursue science, technology, engineering and...

Six UC Merced students pose in front of a University of California, Merced backdrop, smiling and holding blue-and-gold pennants that read “UC Merced Alumni” and “UC Merced.”

Student Philanthropy Month Returns to UC Merced with Focus on Service and Giving

Student Philanthropy Month, now in its fifth consecutive year, gives students opportunities throughout March to better understand philanthropy and its impact on the university, the community and...

Four student standing in front of their poster at the Data Science Challenge

UC Merced Students Invited to Tackle Real-World AI Challenges in 2026 Data Science Program

Applications are open for the 2026 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Data Science Challenge, a two-week summer internship that gives students a firsthand look at national lab research through...

Leadership in STEM: Abigail Gyamfi Honored with 2025 ACS Leader Scholars Award

Chemistry and Biochemistry (CBC) Ph.D. candidate Abigail Gyamfi has earned the 2025 American Chemical Society Leader Scholars Award. The ACS Leader Scholars program recognizes outstanding...

UC Merced Injects Over $1 Billion in Economic Vitality into San Joaquin Valley, State

UC Merced, a beacon of academic achievement in the San Joaquin Valley, is also a powerful driver of economic growth and prosperity in the region it was created to serve. UC Merced ...

UC Merced students shown leading the MLK Jr Day Unity march.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service: A Day On, Not a Day Off

UC Merced will honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. by hosting a day of action, inviting the campus and community to serve together on Monday, Jan. 19. In keeping with King’s call to...

graphic with five individuals higlighted; three females and two males with UC Merced and ARCS logos on blue background

Innovative Research Secures Coveted Fellowships for Ph.D. Students

The ARCS Foundation Northern California awarded five UC Merced graduate students with 2025-26 fellowships. ARCS advances science and technology in the United States by providing financial awards to...

collage of photo with yellow text on a blue background reading Carnegie Elective Reclassification for Community Engagement

The American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation Recognize UC Merced's Leadership in Community Engagement

UC Merced has once again been recognized as a national leader in community-engaged scholarship. The 2026 Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement affirms the university’s...

Collage photo of Black male with dark hair and beard wearing blue and gray long sleeve shirt and photo of campus signage and palm trees.

Ph.D. Student Awarded Fellowship to Advance Environmental Health and Harmful Algal Bloom Mitigation

Public health Ph.D. student Felix Agyemang Opoku has been awarded the UC Global Health Initiative Center for Planetary Health Water and Health Summer Research Fellowship. The research...

Two UC Merced students smiling at the camera

Giving Tuesday at UC Merced: Collective Generosity Transforms Lives

When UC Merced launches Give to UC Merced 2025 on Dec. 2, it won’t just be about one day of giving; the month-long campaign will be about hope, opportunity and community impact. For the 12th...