Undergraduate Students

Hundreds of UC Merced Graduates to Cross the Stage at Fall Commencement

December 17, 2025

Hundreds of UC Merced students will be celebrated this weekend at the university’s fall commencement ceremonies in downtown Merced. Nearly 400 undergraduate students and 40 Graduate Division students are set to cross the stage in the Art Kamangar Center at the Merced Theatre during three...

Book Rental Gives Students Instant Savings

Like many students, UC Merced sophomore Demonte Hughes is gearing up for the fall semester. At the top of his list is securing the textbooks required for his courses, which he says is a good...

UC Merced Plasma Lab Turning Leftovers into Cleaner Energy

There’s a reason the UC Merced plasma lab is isolated behind a locking fence near the entrance to campus. There’s some serious heat being produced down there. Engineering professors Gerardo Diaz,...

Researchers Spend Summer Working on Projects Near and Far

From the caves of Belize to laboratories in Japan, UC Merced faculty members and students are abroad conducting research this summer across the globe. Though the semester ended in mid-May, the campus...

Transfer Student Triumphs Over Foster Care Odds

Portia Mira considers herself lucky. Although the UC Merced senior was taken from her parents and spent five years in foster care, she said she and her sister are much better off than most. “Most...

Scholarship Supports Student Magician’s Visit to Help Chinese Earthquake Orphans

When a deadly earthquake shook the Sichuan province of his native China in May 2008, John Li watched from Los Angeles and immediately made a connection. He knew his passion for performing magic could...

Harvard Program Grooms Future Latino Leaders

Five University of California, Merced, undergraduate students have been selected to attend the Latino Leadership Initiative (LLI) Program at Harvard University Kennedy School’s Center for Public...

Political Science Major Serves Students, Community on Local School Board

Fidel Cervantes found the right fit for his university education 25 miles down the road from home. A native of Delhi in north Merced County, Cervantes selected UC Merced when he made his college...

UC Merced Celebrates Largest Graduating Class

A joyous throng of 776 degree candidates of the University of California, Merced, today marched through the Beginnings Sculpture and onto the campus’ South Bowl to receive their prized degrees,...

Speaker, Singer Grateful for Commencement Opportunities

Grecia Sanchez and Blaine Hartsock know they’re more than lucky. Out of dozens of UC Merced seniors, they were chosen to speak and sing, respectively, at the 2012 Commencement ceremony. “I don’t...