Admissions

For Melissa Ugaldes and many San Joaquin Valley high school students like her, a University of California education might not be an obvious option.

A fall census shows enrollment at the University of California, Merced, has reached 6,195 students — a 7 percent increase over last year — as the campus continues to grow in both numbers and competitiveness.

After evaluating a record application pool of more than 18,000, the university enrolled 1,757 new undergraduate students for the 2013 fall semester. The freshman class jumped by nearly 11 percent, from 1,495 to 1,654 — making it the largest freshman class in the campus’s history. In addition, the campus added 103 transfer students and 101 graduate students.

The University of California, Merced, kicks off its 2013-14 academic year today with the largest and most diverse class of incoming freshmen, the largest contingent of graduate students, the largest total enrollment and the largest body of faculty members in its history, the university said today.

The best way to explore what UC Merced has to offer is to visit the campus and see it firsthand.

Editor's Note: As of mid-February, UC Merced's graduate student applications increased by 6.6 percent over last year. This press release reports a 41 percent increase, which at the time (Jan. 18) was an accurate figure. The current figure is lower.

MERCED, Calif. — Though UC Merced looked back this year to celebrate the 10^th anniversary of the campus’s groundbreaking, signs of what the future will hold continue to come into focus.

Those signs include cutting-edge research moving forward in the San Joaquin Valley -- the state's fastest growing region -- and around the world, the growing campus, and the ever-strengthening bond between the campus and the community.

Students who visit the UC Merced Students First Center (SFC) in the lobby of the Leo and Dottie Kolligian Library will see it’s different from other student services offices.

University of California, Merced, Chancellor Dorothy Leland will visit Merced High School Oct. 18 as part of Achieve UC, a systemwide initiative to show high school students how they can attain a University of California education.

The idea behind the event is to inspire students to aim for college, then provide them with the information they need to get there.

The University of California, Merced, began its eighth academic year with 5,760 undergraduate and graduate students, up nearly 11 percent to a new high, according to data released today (Sept. 27).

The increase proves that demand for UC Merced grows, despite a difficult economic environment. Space constraints forced the university to limit undergraduate enrollment for the first time ever this year, though graduate enrollment and research have not been affected.

The University of California, Merced, begins its eighth academic year today with record enrollment of approximately 5,600 students, a 23 percent increase in graduate-student enrollment and 26 newly hired faculty members to teach and conduct advanced research that may someday change the world.