Mechanical Engineering

UC Merced Alum, Now a Robotics Expert for Amazon, Advises Students to Get Their Hands Dirty

January 6, 2026

Kevin Arrieta is pictured speaking to an electrical engineering class at UC Merced.

Kevin Arrieta got into robotics to avoid getting into trouble. Arrieta said he joined the robotics club at his Compton high school after the teacher who ran it gave him an ultimatum. "I had gotten in with the wrong crowd," he said. "I had a physics teacher who told me, '...

This Saturday, mechanical engineering major Vanessa Andrade will participate in the university’s second fall commencement ceremony.

Passion for Cars Steers Graduating Senior into Mechanical Engineering

Growing up in San Juan Bautista, Vanessa Andrade loved hanging out with her father and his collection of cars and tractors. She spent hours in the “barn” or shop, helping change the...

Fundamental Fuel Cell Research Earns Engineer a CAREER Award

To further his fundamental research into solid oxide fuel cells and other high-temperature electrochemical energy systems, the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded Professor Min Hwan Lee its...

Understanding Why Designs Work — or Don’t — is Important

Just because a design works once doesn’t mean that the research and development is done. That’s why, Professor Sarah Kurtz argues in a new commentary in the prestigious journal...

A woman in pink scarf and dark jacket stands in front of a table covered with posters and car prototypes.

Qattawi Named Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer

The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) named Professor Ala Qattawi one of this year’s Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineers. “I am honored to receive this award,”...

More than 1,200 degrees were conferred last weekend, pushing the campus's alumni total over 9,000.

Perseverance, Leadership Key Themes of Campus’ Spring Commencement

UC Merced’s exuberant spring graduates got the chance to demonstrate their gratitude during the 13th Spring Commencement ceremonies this weekend as many of them paused to thank the faculty...

'Red Carpet' Event Honors Exceptional Leadership

At the 14th annual UC Merced Leadership Awards, undergraduate and graduate students, faculty advisors and student organizations were celebrated Hollywood style — complete with cameras, lights...

Graduate programs in the natural sciences are among the many UC Merced graduate programs included in the newest U.S. News rankings of Best Graduate Schools.

Grad Programs Make U.S. News Rankings Debut

For the first time, UC Merced’s doctoral programs in the sciences have been ranked among the best in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 edition of Best Graduate...

A student stands in front of a sign that reads "NASA Research Park." Above the sign is a model of a NASA space shuttle.

NASA Interns Return With New Prospects, Realized Dreams

Zach Petrek, a second-year doctoral student in chemistry and chemical biology, can usually be found running experiments in the laboratory of his advisor, Professor Tao Ye. But this summer, he did...

Students Help Campus Earn Latest LEED Certification

UC Merced’s Classroom and Office Building (COB) has achieved a silver rating from the LEED Building Operations and Maintenance (O+M) sustainability program, the campus’s first certification to come...