Student & Alumni Success

Ants, Endurance and a Ph.D. at the Finish Line

March 18, 2026

UC Merced graduate student Reo Maynard studies a carpenter ant from one of his many ant colonies.

On most days, Reo Maynard’s life swings between two ecosystems: the microscopic world inside an ant’s gut and the sprawling one that stretches from Fresno to the Sierra Nevada mountains. The 51-year-old Navy veteran, dad of two, screenwriter-in-waiting and newly minted Fresno City...

UC Merced student Nayelyi Salazar on campus

Delhi Student Made the Leap to UC Merced and Hasn’t Looked Back

Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. A few more taps and Nayelyi Salazar would be a community college student — a big step for the high-schooler from Delhi, a town of 10,000 that hugs...

Student stands outdoors on the UC Merced campus holding a notebook and pen, looking off into the distance near a campus walkway lined with leafless trees.

Student Finds Community and Purpose Through Culture and Literature

Between classes at UC Merced, you will often find Padme James under the trees outside the Leo and Dottie Kolligian Library. What she studies there isn’t directly correlated to her classwork,...

Six UC Merced students pose in front of a University of California, Merced backdrop, smiling and holding blue-and-gold pennants that read “UC Merced Alumni” and “UC Merced.”

Student Philanthropy Month Returns to UC Merced with Focus on Service and Giving

Student Philanthropy Month, now in its fifth consecutive year, gives students opportunities throughout March to better understand philanthropy and its impact on the university, the community and...

Group of individuals attending event with grads student presenting on stage

Ready, Set, Slam: 10 UC Merced Scholars Battle for Champion Title

Ten UC Merced graduate researchers are gearing up to deliver the most intense three minutes of their academic careers. Each spring, master’s and Ph.D. students across the campus’s...

Breyenne Pierce, a utility player on the water polo team, demonstrates her skills.

For Turlock High Grad, UC Merced is Just Far Enough from Home

Breyenne Pierce wasn't sure UC Merced was for her. The Turlock High graduate had followed her passion for water polo to Sierra College in Rocklin. As she was concluding her community college...

Four student standing in front of their poster at the Data Science Challenge

UC Merced Students Invited to Tackle Real-World AI Challenges in 2026 Data Science Program

Applications are open for the 2026 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Data Science Challenge, a two-week summer internship that gives students a firsthand look at national lab research through...

Leadership in STEM: Abigail Gyamfi Honored with 2025 ACS Leader Scholars Award

Chemistry and Biochemistry (CBC) Ph.D. candidate Abigail Gyamfi has earned the 2025 American Chemical Society Leader Scholars Award. The ACS Leader Scholars program recognizes outstanding...

Recent female UC Merced graduates wave to the camera

UC Merced Recognized on Newsweek’s Inaugural ‘America’s Best Colleges for Women’ List

UC Merced has been recognized on Newsweek’s inaugural America’s Best Colleges for Women 2026 list, a national ranking designed to spotlight institutions that support, advance and elevate...

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

Creative, Problem-Solving Projects Win at 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...