Undergraduate Experience at UC Merced

Student & Alumni Success

UC Merced Ph.D. Student Receives Prestigious Dissertation Fellowship

June 3, 2026

Headshot Jarrod L Brown Jr.
Jarrod L. Brown Jr. is the first UC Merced graduate student to be awarded the National Academy of Education/Spencer Dissertation fellowship, supporting his doctoral research in structural inequality in higher education. The sociology Ph.D. candidate, who is one of 35 recipients selected...
Sameen Yunus, left, and her faculty advisor, physics Professor David Strubbe

Graduate Student Earns Fellowship to Study Fusion at Livermore Lab

UC Merced physics graduate student Sameen Yunus has been awarded a prestigious fellowship allowing her to spend the next three years working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, conducting...

UC Merced Celebrates Student Philanthropy Month With Leadership, Service and Giving

In March, UC Merced wrapped up another successful Student Philanthropy Month, an annual tradition led by the Student Alumni Association that inspires students to engage in the spirit of giving and...

UC Merced Pride Week: Lambda Alliance Promotes Belonging and Community

UC Merced's Lambda Alliance is continuing its tradition of hosting Pride Week from March 31 to April 4. Held each year in April, the week of events celebrates and advocates for the LGBTQ+...
Maddison Crump and two other UC Merced students

Bright Center Student Lightens Lives with Determination, Empathy

Sometimes you meet a young person who makes such a powerful impression that you want to vault forward a few decades to see how much they lifted others and elevated our world. Maddison Crump is one...
Central Valley Stories event attendees and one painting

Central Valley Stories Seminar Connects Students to Community

Among the UC Merced students’ impressive creations in the dimly lighted room — dioramas, poems, photo collages, paintings in bold colors — Derek Miller’s creation attracted...
UC Merced basketball players

UC Merced Basketball Teams Flying High to Future in NCAA

Intercollegiate basketball soared to new heights at UC Merced this season. For the first time, the women’s and men’s teams both advanced to their respective National Association of...
Photo depicts Myles Haynes looking to pass the ball to a teammate during a UC Merced basketball game.

Myles Haynes Wins Big by Creating Human Help Project

This story is part of a series for Black History Month. Read more stories highlighting Black excellence at UC Merced. Men's basketball senior Myles Haynes has encountered expected...
Professor Rudy Ortiz

Physiological Society Recognizes Rudy Ortiz for Mentoring Underrepresented Students

Physiology Professor Rudy M. Ortiz has been named this year's winner of the A. Clifford Barger Underrepresented Minority Mentorship Award by the American Physiological Society. The UC Merced...
Students celebrate at the annual barbecue, sponsored by Black clubs and organizations, at Lake Yosemite.

Student-driven Center Offers Safe Space for Community, Resources and Programs

This story is part of a series for Black History Month. Read more stories highlighting Black excellence at UC Merced. The Black Scholars Resource Center might be one of UC Merced’s...

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