School of Engineering

From Soil to Climate Solutions: Berhe Leads Sierra Nevada Research Institute into its Next Chapter

September 11, 2025

When Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe arrived at UC Merced in 2009, she and her husband, Professor Teamrat Ghezzehei, were leaving major research institutions to join a brand-new campus in California’s Central Valley. It was a leap of faith — one made easier by the Sierra Nevada Research...

Josh Viers, Rakesh Goel, Yosuke Yamashiki, Hrant Hratchian, Sarah Naumes and Chase Yamauchi at the MOU signing. Photo by Leigh Bernacchi

Collaboration Across Continents: Agreement Brings Merced, Kyoto Campuses Closer

Merced, California, and Kyoto, Japan, are nearly 5,500 miles apart, but their research universities' shared goals to improve society is bringing them together. A new agreement between...

Participants in a Secure Water Future expedition raft on the Green River in Utah.

Water Research Goes Deep with Rafting Trip to Utah

The USDA-funded Secure Water Future (SWF) team at UC Merced believes that to fully understand water, you must do more than just study this vital resource. You must immerse yourself in it -...

Campus Adds New Areas of Studies for Students to Choose From

New students or those who have not yet chosen their majors will have an array of options before them. Five new majors and several new emphases, ranging across all three schools, are all coming...

Academic Senate Honors Faculty Members with Annual Awards

Each year, faculty members are specially recognized by their peers in the Academic Senate for a variety of accomplishments. This year’s Academic Senate awards honor faculty from across the...

Professor Ahmed Sabir Arif is pictured with PhD students Tafadzwa Joseph Dube, Laxmi Pandey (graduated Spring 2022), Gulnar Rakhmetulla (graduated Spring 2022), and Yuan Ren.

CAREER Award Funds Research Into Lip Reading for Mobile Devices

Professor Ahmed Sabbir Arif has received a CAREER award for his research into non-acoustic, image-based speech input on mobile devices. He is the 35th researcher from UC Merced to earn a...

Students, Alums Receive Competitive NSF Fellowships

UC Merced students Brianna Aguilar-Solis, Diane-Marie Brache-Smith, Sierra Lema and Sarif Morningstar, and alumni Diana Cruz Garcia and Anna Maria Calderon were awarded fellowships from the National...

student wearing regalia, getting their diplomas

Inspired by Their Roots, UC Merced Graduates Look to the Future

A sea of blue and gold regalia filled Recreation Field as hundreds of UC Merced Bobcats crossed the stage during commencement weekend. Almost 1,500 students took part in three distinct ceremonies...

Student Jose Sanez undergoes a virtual eye exam developed by a team at UC Merced's Innovate to Grow event, .

Student Projects Provide Real Solutions at Innovate to Grow Event

Dozens of innovative ideas were on display at UC Merced's Innovate to Grow event May 11. The biannual event provides an opportunity for engineering students to showcase their capstone projects,...

Big Turnout for Recognition of Staff Service and Excellence

A standing-room-only audience in UC Merced’s largest room gathered Monday morning to honor staff employees who have reached milestones in service to the UC system and others whose work was...