Student Life

New Bobcat Pursues Public Health and Passion for Performing

July 16, 2025

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2025 semester. Trinity King is coming to UC Merced with dreams of shining both as a performer and in the health care world. She’s excited to blend her love for dance with her academic journey as a public...

Give to UC Merced Campaign Tops $1.4 Million, Breaking Record for Third Year

Give to UC Merced, the university’s annual year-end fundraising campaign, was the most successful of its 11-year history, garnering nearly $1.43 million from 647 donors. The tremendous show of...

UC Merced to Celebrate Hundreds of Graduates at Fall Commencement

UC Merced will celebrate hundreds of graduates alongside their friends and families in the Art Kamangar Center at the Merced Theatre this weekend. There are 402 Bobcats set to participate in the...

Alice Waters Institute Challenges Student Chefs to Get Creative

Student employees in UC Merced’s dining centers got an up-close look at the sustainable techniques at a family almond farm and were challenged to create locally sourced dishes as part of a...

Star Soccer Player Finds Success On and Off the Pitch

Four years ago, lifelong soccer player Yesenia Tijerina stopped playing when the pandemic shut everything down. Her classes at UC Davis were taken online at her home in Salinas. Tijerina started...

UC Merced Unveils Big Rufus, a Monument to Resilience, Diversity and Hope

UC Merced on Wednesday unveiled a striking monument to a university on the rise. A crowd of students, faculty and staff gathered in the early evening’s long shadows at University Plaza to...

UC Merced new Bobcat Bound Leslie Aquino

Bakersfield Student Ready to Go the Distance at UC Merced

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2024 semester. A high school distance runner from Bakersfield is striding into new territory, becoming the...

Photo shows people using carts to move items into dorms at UC Merced.

UC Merced Welcomes Students For Fall 2024 Semester

As classes begin Wednesday for UC Merced's 20th academic year, the campus and its offerings continue to grow to meet the needs of students and the community at large. Edwin Lopez was so...

New UC Merced student Antonio "Tony" Lopez-Blanco

Central Coast Student Brings Flair for Robotics to UC Merced

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2024 semester. After diving into robotics in high school, Antonio "Tony" Lopez-Blanco is...

Honor Student Gives UC Merced a New 'Cat to Cheer About

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2024 semester. Jenna Hinds, a Central Valley native, is bringing spirit to UC Merced. Hinds discovered a...