News

UC Merced Takes Another Giant Leap in U.S. News Rankings

September 6, 2019

The fastest-growing public research university in the nation is the fastest-rising university in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings. The University of California Merced, jumped 32 spots in the ranking of National Universities in the 2020 edition of the guide, released today. UC...

University Ranks Top Ten in Nation in First-Generation Student Performance for Washington Monthly

September 3, 2019

UC Merced moved into the top 10 in the country in first-generation student performance in the Washington Monthly 2019 College Guide and Rankings released last week. The university — with more than 73 percent of the undergraduate student population being first generation, double the national average...

TED Audiences get the Dirt on Soil and Climate Change from Berhe

September 3, 2019

Soil is one of the foundations of life on Earth and could be an important part of the solution to climate change, if only we can stop treating it like dirt. That’s the message Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe shared with a global audience when she became the only current UC Merced researcher to...

New Program Will Guide Bobcats Through First-Year Transition

August 30, 2019

With a new academic year underway, first-year students are transitioning to university life. In an effort to help these students integrate into the environment — while cultivating meaningful academic, social, wellness and leadership experiences — UC Merced’s Office of Student Life has created the...

UC Merced Unveils Second Phase of Merced 2020 Project, Says Thank You to Leland

August 19, 2019

Two simple words, “Leland Legacy,” captured the significance of Wednesday’s opening event for the second phase of the Merced 2020 Project, an event that doubled as a goodbye and thank you to outgoing Chancellor Dorothy Leland. The message graced a wall of the new Sustainability Research and...

Media Creates False Balance on Climate Science, Study Shows

August 13, 2019

The American media lends too much weight to people who dismiss climate change, giving them legitimacy they haven’t earned, posing serious danger to efforts aimed at raising public awareness and motivating rapid action, a new study shows. While it is not uncommon for media outlets to interview...

Humanities Grad Students Drive Community Engagement, Public Understanding Through Research

August 8, 2019

Since his undergraduate days in Environmental Studies at Humboldt State University, Ivan Soto has aspired to produce research with a positive impact on the public — not just to benefit the academic community. As a doctoral student in the Interdisciplinary Humanities at UC Merced, Soto is doing just...

Grant Helps University Ramp Up Food Rescue Efforts

August 1, 2019

UC Merced’s desire to fight food insecurity in Merced County and on campus got a big boost recently after being awarded a $492,000 grant from CalRecycle. The university — along with Merced County Food Bank and Blue Strike Environmental — received the grant in an effort to increase food rescues in...

Founding Professor Named Associate Dean of Natural Sciences

July 26, 2019

The School of Natural Sciences has a new associate dean for Academic Programs, founding faculty member Professor Michael Colvin. “With his experience as a researcher and administrator, his dedication to student success and his deep knowledge of the School, Professor Colvin is particularly well...

Undergrad Discovers Triceratops Skull on Paleontology Dig in North Dakota

July 24, 2019

Harrison Duran has always wanted to discover ‘the land before time,’ and his desire to dig up dinosaur bones led him to the Badlands of North Dakota, where Alice the Triceratops was waiting for him. Duran is a fifth-year biology student with an emphasis in ecology and evolutionary biology. A...