Student & Alumni Success

Student Finds Community and Purpose Through Culture and Literature

March 12, 2026

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.

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, but it connects her roots to where she hopes her future is headed. Instead of reviewing notes for a...

United for Education: Merced Institutions Forge a Stronger Future Together at UC Merced Summit

In an unprecedented show of unity, leaders from Merced City School District, Merced Union High School District, Merced College and UC Merced came together to discuss how continued collaboration can...

UC Merced a National Finalist for Student Success Award

UC Merced, recognized nationwide for providing access to a world-class education and transforming young scholars’ lives, is a finalist for the inaugural Excellence in Student Success Award...

SJV PRIME+ Expands Training with Sutter Gould, Modesto Hospital Partnership

UC Merced’s San Joaquin Valley PRIME+ (B.S. to M.D.) pathway continues to grow as it teams up with Sutter Gould Medical Foundation and Sutter’s Memorial Medical Center in Modesto. The...

This summer's cohort of Data Science Challenge students and Professor Suzanne Sindi (red scarf)

Two Weeks, One Challenge, Lifelong Impact: Bobcats Dive into Data Science Challenge

Kathy Chau believed she knew what her future would look like. The first in her family to attend college, she had long been advised to aim for a safe and stable job — one that might not light a...

UC Merced Named the 14th Best College in the Nation by Wall Street Journal

Following recognition as a Top 25 university by U.S. News & World Report, UC Merced has once again earned national acclaim, this time from the Wall Street Journal. In its 2026 report of the Best...

UC Merced Named Top 25 Public University by U.S. News & World Report

UC Merced’s upward trajectory shows no signs of slowing as the university has cracked the Top 25 of U.S. News & World Report’s best public schools in the nation. The annual survey...

UC Merced and Fresno Unified Launch Guaranteed Admission Path with Scholarship Opportunity

A new program between UC Merced and the Fresno Unified School District guarantees admission to UC Merced for qualified high school juniors and offers each student the chance to earn up to $12,000 in...

Campos Foundation’s $5 Million Gift to UC Merced Supports Track and Field Facility, STEM Scholarships

The Campos Foundation, one of UC Merced’s most dedicated supporters and partners, has made a $5 million gift for the development of a new state-of-the-art campus facility dedicated to track and...

UC Merced and Campos Foundation Host ENgage Summer Bridge Academy for Students in STEM

UC Merced, in conjunction with longtime campus partner the Campos Foundation, launched the pilot Campos ENgage Summer Bridge Academy, a weeklong summer program aimed at supporting underrepresented...