Campus Community

UC Merced is one of the country’s best four-year universities for quality, affordability and alumni outcomes, according to Money’s 2020 Best Colleges rankings by value.

In its first year on the annual list, UC Merced is No. 76 out of 739 schools that met Money’s criteria for evaluation.

There is a growing acceptance and adoption of drones — unmanned aircraft systems — by local and state agencies across the U.S.

Advocates say there’s good reason: Drones can be a powerful tool in environmental monitoring, agriculture and even construction. But as with any new technology, there is going to be a learning curve to make drones effective, including policies and training.

The San Joaquin Valley has a shortage of doctors

Change is everywhere at UC Merced this year, from hiring a new chancellor to the completion of a major campus expansion. The Sierra Nevada Research Institute (SNRI), an early hallmark of research excellence at UC Merced, is also making a change: After a 13-year tenure, Faculty Director Professor Roger Bales has stepped down and Professor Tom Harmon is taking the reins.

University of California President Janet Napolitano has selected UC Merced student organization RadioBio as one of two recipients for the 2020 President’s Award for Outstanding Student Leadership.

RadioBio, a science podcast that discusses topics ranging from molecules to ecosystems, was created in 2016 by graduate students to increase access to research in the sciences.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has kept most students and faculty mentors off campus, UC Merced’s commitment to providing research experiences to undergraduate students has not wavered.

Over the past 14 years, the Summer Undergraduate Research Institute (SURI) has become an integral part of the research training for many students. Each summer, SURI scholars spend nine weeks performing academic research alongside faculty mentors in their disciplines.

Graduate Dean Marjorie Zatz has a new title, at least for now. Starting this summer, she is serving as interim vice chancellor for Research and Economic Development, filling the slot left open when Vice Chancellor Sam Traina stepped down to return to the faculty.

Zatz has been shadowing Traina since spring and said her primary goal in the new role will be positioning the campus to earn R1 research status. This status is given only to those doctoral-granting universities conducting “very high research activity” by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

NASA’s fifth exploratory rover is scheduled to head for Mars later this month to try and answer key questions about the potential for life on the red planet.

Before the rover leaves Earth, current and former members of UC Merced’s Fundamental Tribology Lab conducted critical tests that will provide key information for the mission’s success.

The University of California, Merced, is nearing the completion of an unprecedented campus expansion project and raising its reputation across the nation and the world, all during a time in which the COVID-19 pandemic has upended nearly every aspect of people’s daily lives and created much uncertainty about the near future. 

And today, the university welcomes a new leader.