Undergraduate Students

UC Merced’s largest research grant in its 16-year history aims to improve agricultural and environmental water resilience. The new $10 million collaborative focuses on water banking, trading and improvements in data-driven management practices to arrive at a climate-resilient future in water-scarce regions of the United States.

A new study by faculty members and students in UC Merced's Department of Cognitive and Information Sciences takes a closer look at the sympathy people have for one another.

UC Merced undergraduates interested in pursuing field research and mentorship opportunities at one of the University of California Natural Reserve System (NRS) sites will now have access to vital scholarship support, thanks to a generous gift from Professor Marilyn L. Fogel and Christopher W. Swarth.

Chancellor Juan Sánchez Muñoz stood at a podium framed by blue and gold balloons and smiled at the throng of students who had come for the Scholars Bridge Crossing.

“Finally, we’re here together,” he said. “Finally!”

It was a happy acknowledgment of the extraordinary journey taken by not just by the students gathered on the greensward next to the SRE building, but by the full campus community. With a healthy combination of fanfare and care, one of UC Merced’s earliest traditions was back after a one-year absence because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Shortly before the fall semester kicked off in person, 11 students were wrapping up their first summer on campus as part of the FACTS summer bridge program.

FACTS stands for San Joaquin Valley Food and Agriculture Cyberinformatics Tools and Science. The six-week summer course, funded by the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture, introduces students to the world of research in agricultural science and technology.

Civil engineering usually brings to mind bridges and skyscrapers, but at UC Merced the engineering program extends far beyond that.  

This fall, UC Merced is launching a new civil engineering major that will sit within the existing civil and environmental engineering major. The program is available to first-year students and will focus on modern civil engineering concepts with an emphasis on sustainability.

More than a few students have probably asked themselves why they have to take calculus — the course is notoriously difficult for some.

“People haven’t been taught math the way it should be,” Department of Applied Mathematics Professor Mayya Tokman said. “Math is practical. It’s there to solve problems and answer questions. But somehow, we lost that, and math is now taught as an abstract.”

Since opening its doors in August 2005, the UC Merced Library has served as the hub of the campus. That all changed when the coronavirus pandemic hit and the building was forced to close in March 2020. Now, the library is gearing up to reopen its doors on Aug. 16 and welcome back members of the university and community.

With a new $20 million federal grant, UC Merced becomes part of a multi-institutional research collaborative to develop artificial intelligence — or AI — solutions to tackle some of agriculture’s biggest challenges related to water management, climate change and integration of new technology into farming.

While many are preparing to head off to college after an unprecedented year, a handful of students are already on UC Merced’s campus and working away in research labs. They’re part of the inaugural FACTS Bridge Program, a way for first-year and transfer students to get a head start on research and more.