First. Further. Forward

Creative, Problem-Solving Projects Win at I2G

January 28, 2026

UC Merced students are depicted in front of a poster explaining their project for I2G.

A semi-automated washing system for bins at a tomato-processing facility and a mobile app for hikers earned big wins at the Fall 2025 I2G, or Innovate to Grow, event at UC Merced. I2G is a unique "experiential learning" program that engages external partner organizations with teams of...

Isabella Mitchell poses for a photo with the Beginnings sculpture in the background.

'Listen to Your Gut': First-Year Student Offers Tips for Success to Incoming Bobcats

Bobcat Day turned out to be one of the most important days in Isabella Mitchell's life. Her experience at UC Merced's open house event in April 2022 assured her that she belonged at the...

UC Merced Professor Tom Harmon introduces a panel discussion of the university's Experimental Smart Farm at a symposium on the Future of Agriculture.

What's The Future of Agriculture? It's Everyone Working Together, Summit Speakers Say

While UC Merced's Experimental Smart Farm is focused on technology and automation, it's also about machine-human collaboration. That was among the messages UC Merced's...

Professor Eric Walle discusses the importance of play with parents at the Kids Discovery Station.

UC Merced Researchers Offer Parents Help, Insight - At No Cost

Imagine having a group of parenting experts in your back yard - researchers who are constantly conducting projects that keep them on the cutting-edge of child development. And they are eager to share...

One of the 2020 Black Lives Matter marches.

Group Conflict Inspires People to Feel Morally Elevated — for Their Side — Study Shows

You know that warm, uplifting feeling you get when you see someone going out of their way to help other people? You might get goosebumps or even a tear in your eye, and something inside you might...

A montage of photos shows students at UC Merced.

Student Philanthropy Month Puts Spotlight on Giving Back to UC Merced and Community

For the second year, UC Merced's Student Alumni Association (SAA) and Office of Alumni Relations have partnered to host Student Philanthropy Month in March. The monthlong initiative is...

Erin Hestir, a professor in environmental engineering, is attending a global water conference.

UC Merced Researcher Taking Part in United Nations Water Conference

A UC Merced researcher has a prominent role at a worldwide conference on water taking place at the United Nations this week. Erin Hestir, a professor in environmental engineering and associate...

Students from Universidad Autónoma Chapingo in Texcoco, Mexico, visited UC Merced in March.

Campus Visit Broadens Mexican Research Collaborations

When three buses rolled onto campus on one chilly winter morning, UC Merced gave the occupants a warm Bobcat welcome. More than 100 undergraduate students and faculty members from Universidad...

A team of researchers published a paper on the varying needs for storing renewable energy.

Research Paper Explores how the Type of Renewable Energy Affects the Needs for Energy Storage

As more renewable energy projects take hold in California, there is more need for effective ways to store that energy. A paper published by a UC Merced research team examines how the need for...

Students walk along Scholars Lane on campus.

Record Number of Students Apply to UC Merced

UC Merced once again broke a record for the number of first-year applications the university received, continuing to show impressive growth even as the national trend shows a decline in the number of...