Graduate Students

Cal-Bridge Scholar Rolando Ortega Wants to Build the Future

August 22, 2025

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2025 semester. Rolando Ortega is closing in on his dream of earning a Ph.D. This fall, the Cal-Bridge scholar from Los Angeles County joins UC Merced to start his doctoral journey. With experience...

Public Health Ph.D. Student Earns Fellowship to Study Health Equity

Fourth-year Public Health doctoral student Tashelle Wright won UC Merced’s first Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program (TRDRP) Predoctoral Fellowship to examine tobacco use and oral health...

Three Ph.D. Students Receive 2019 NSF Fellowships

UC Merced doctoral student Melissa Spence and incoming graduate students Caleb Larnerd and Cristian Sarabia were awarded Graduate Research fellowships (GRFP) from the National Science Foundation....

Sierra Seedlings Illustrate Effects of Climate Change on Next Generation of Forests

Climate change is bad news for forests, and a new study by UC Merced Professor Emily Moran demonstrates one aspect of that news. Higher summer temperatures hurt tree seedlings’ growth and...

Members of the Carson House spent the day in Yosemite National Park to learn about concerns threatening the wellbeing of the park.

Science-Themed Living Learning Communities Enjoy Successful Debut

It started with a simple off-hand comment, one that would likely be met with a chuckle at any other institution. At UC Merced, it became a ripple that has changed the academic and social strata of an...

Participating in research activities through UROC enriches their undergraduate experience and prepares them for graduate study and beyond.

Undergrad Research Fuels Opportunities for Grad School, Careers

The opportunity to participate in cutting-edge scientific research as an undergraduate is one of the most exciting aspects of a UC Merced education. One of the best preparation opportunities for...

Researchers stand near a large solar collection panel.

UC Solar Projects Bringing Lower Costs, Renewable Energy to Industry, Commerce and Homes

Three big UC Solar projects are poised to be the next big breakthroughs in low-cost, accessible sustainable commercial and residential energy in California and far beyond. Researchers are building...

Jason Castillo ('09), now a dermatologist and surgeon in Southern California, gives the alumni speech to the schools of Natural Sciences and Engineering at the spring 2019 commencement.

Older and Wiser: 2009 Graduates Reflect on Instrumental UC Merced Education

A decade has passed since Sam Fong (’09) crossed the stage to get his diploma and walked through Beginnings for the first time as part of UC Merced’s inaugural graduating class, and a lot...

Conference attendees and faculty members share math discussions

SIAM Student Chapter Conference Unites Valley Regional Applied Mathematics Community

Oscillatory traffic patterns, the dynamics of micro swimmers and the use of deep neural networks in image reconstruction were just a few of the topics at the fourth annual Central Valley Regional...

Lengthy Study Shows Value of Soil Health and Forest Restoration after Damaging Events

A nine-year experiment by a UC Merced Department of Life and Environmental Sciences professor and his colleagues is illuminating the importance of soil carbon in maintaining healthy and functioning...