Graduate Students

Degrees, Cheers and a Record Number of Graduates Under the Open Sky

May 13, 2026

A graduate student eagerly anticipates her hooding ceremony.

UC Merced is abuzz with celebration as students, families, friends, staff and faculty finish last-minute preparations for the largest commencement in university history. Across three outdoor ceremonies, 1,649 undergraduates and 112 graduate students will walk the stage at Spring Commencement...

Breakthrough in Stem Cell Research: First Image of Niche Environment

Professor Joel Spencer was a rising star in college soccer and now he is an emerging scientist in the world of biomedical engineering, capturing — for the first time — an image of a...

Maria Nishanian will assist graduate students with academic support, time management skills, communication skills, and referrals to campus and community resources.

Grad Students Gain an Ally in New Academic Counselor

Graduate students face a number of unique challenges as they embark on the life-changing journey of earning their master’s or Ph.D. Adjusting to graduate studies, achieving work-life balance...

Public Health Grad Student’s CDC-funded Research Helps Mosquito Control

Public health Ph.D. student Ryan Torres presented research at last month’s Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California Conference in San Diego that could be foundational for future...

Students walk along Scholars Lane on campus.

University Friends Circle Offers Scholarship Opportunity for Student Volunteers

UC Merced students who are active in the community are encouraged to apply for the University Friends Circle Distinguished Volunteer Scholarship for the upcoming 2020-2021 academic year. The...

UC Merced Alum Takes Helm at Lassen Community College

Trevor Albertson, who earned his Ph.D. in world cultures and history from UC Merced in 2009, has been appointed interim president/superintendent of Lassen Community College (LCC) by its board of...

EECS Alumna Named ‘Rising Star’ for Computer Vision Work

UC Merced alumna Sifei Liu, who earned a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in 2017, was selected to participate in Rising Stars in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences 2019...

Bioengineering professor Eva de Alba in her lab with her students and postdoctoral scholar. Students in back row: Pedro Diaz-Parga, Arturo Gonzalez, Suzanne Sandin, Kevin Ramirez and Christopher Randolph. Front Row: Meenakshi Sharma and Eva de Alba.

Bioengineering Faculty Member Studies Inflammation with NIH Grant

Everyone has inflammation in their body at some point as it is a vital part of the immune system. It’s what happens when white blood cells flow to a wound, whether that is a bruise or a broken...

Public Health Ph.D. student Chia Thao's research interests center on improving minority health disparities and promoting well being.

Ph.D. Student Gets to the Root of Health Disparities Facing Hmong Farmers

Chia Thao was a teenager when she arrived in Fresno with her family to begin a new life. She was born in a refugee camp in Thailand, where her Laotian parents had fled after the Vietnam War....

Professor Sarah Kurtz's research in comparing the efficiency of different solar-cell technologies when installed on car roofs could advance efforts to use solar panels on electric cars to recharge their batteries.

Potential of Electric Vehicles Tied to Solar Research

Not spending money on gas, oil changes, and tune-ups and not producing harmful greenhouse gas emissions is enough to sell many people on plug-in electric cars. But many consumers won’t bite...