Scholarships

This story is part of a series for Black History Month. Read more stories highlighting Black excellence at UC Merced.

The brutal deaths of African Americans George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and others at the hands of police officers five years ago catalyzed for Black communities to unite globally and reignite the Black Lives Matter movement.

For five years, UC Merced has offered veterans a unique opportunity to consider, dream of and plan for their lives beyond the military.

A free workshop held in Yosemite National Park, the Yosemite Veterans Education and Leadership Seminar presents veterans with an array of networking, career and educational opportunities, resources, assistance in accessing their military benefits and programs, and, best of all, a community of people who can be there for them long after the workshop is over.

On Dec. 3, the date of this year's Giving Tuesday, UC Merced will participate in the worldwide day of charitable giving by launching Give to UC Merced 2024. For the fifth year, the university's annual fundraising initiative will extend beyond its original 24-hour period to the entire month of December.

Hundreds of UC Merced supporters made it crystal clear they believe in the university's mission, giving a record-breaking amount to support current Bobcats and other members of the campus community, through scholarships and fellowships, research projects and more.

A total of 692 gifts were made during the campus's annual monthlong fundraising campaign, Give to UC Merced, which amounted to nearly $1.3 million in vital funding for the university.

When Carlos Martinez was growing up in Southern California, his experience outdoors largely consisted of the irrigated lawns and tidy trees of his local park. Camping and hiking were not in his family’s recreational repertoire. Meanwhile, high school and work kept him too busy to focus on much else.

Martinez’s diligence paid off with an offer of admission to UC Merced. Like all undergraduate biological sciences majors, he completed more than a few laboratory classes involving pipettes and test tubes.

After Thanksgiving wraps up, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday take hold of many people's time, attention and dollars. However, there is another day of opportunity — one that holds the potential of creating a positive ripple effect originating at UC Merced and extending across the globe.

Since age 5, Preston Nguyen has been kicking around a soccer ball.

“I have been consumed by the sport ever since,” the Turlock native said. “I can play any role in the midfield, but I usually play as a defensive midfielder.”

The incoming management and business economics major is joining UC Merced this fall as part of the men’s soccer team on an athletic scholarship.

The Gateway Scholarship Program, UC Merced's longstanding student-support initiative focused on empowering young people from the San Joaquin Valley, has received a significant infusion of funding, ensuring the scholarship's ability to help Merced-area students for generations to come.

The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation has established a new scholarship endowment to ensure that many of UC Merced's underrepresented students, particularly those from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, have access to much-needed financial resources to support them during their higher-education journeys.

UC Merced undergraduates who dream of expanding their educational horizons by immersing themselves in foreign cultures and far-away countries now have access to vital financial aid for that goal, thanks to a generous gift from longtime Board of Trustees member, donor, and student support advocate Denise Watkins.