Competitive Edge Summer Bridge

The transition from undergraduate to graduate students can be extremely difficult, leading to potential problems with student success, retention and even graduation.

Graduate students face an unusual dilemma: as undergraduates, they were the smartest and most successful students in their classrooms. But when they first enter graduate school, they feel like the least knowledgeable students in the room, painfully aware of how much they still need to learn.

This radical shift comes at a time when they must quickly learn to navigate a new school and a new city — all the while juggling intense work, research, and study schedules. And while this poses a significant challenge for nearly all students, it is perhaps most difficult for those with a limited support network — such as first generation students or those from backgrounds typically underrepresented in higher education.

The UC Merced Competitive Edge Summer Bridge program addresses this critical point in a graduate student’s development and helps to ensure that participants are better equipped to complete their degrees and go on to successful careers.

The Program At a Glance

Graduate students who participate in this program:

• Move to Merced early for better acclimation
• Are placed in a cohort to build early support structures
• Begin work with advisors to get a head start on research techniques and projects
• Attend tailored workshops and seminars designed to give them a broad foundation of professional knowledge
• Work with funding experts to make significant progress on a major external predoctoral fellowship proposal

Program Components

The Graduate Division has organized a series of seminars and workshops designed to help students acclimate to graduate work, begin the process of learning to write academic proposals and papers, and to proactively seek out and self-train in the basic technical skills needed to conduct their research.

Weekly Workshops:

• Fellowship Writing
• Data Management
• Humanities Research Methods
• Professional Development
  • Adjusting to Graduate School
  • Maximizing Advisory/Advisee Relationships
  • Mastering Academic Writing
  • Balancing Personal and Academic Life
  • Diversity in Academia
  • Introduction to Teaching
  • Presenting in Academia

Mentor Workshops

Social and Networking Events:

• Ice Cream and Networking
• Lunches
• Outdoor Activites

Testimonials

"The Competitive Edge Summer Bridge Program provided me with invaluable information about what reviewers look for in applications. During this time I received helpful, detailed feedback and advice from the mentors and previous awardees that were crucial to the success of my applications".

-Maia Powell
Ph.D. student in Applied Mathematics
2018 Summer Bridge cohort
2020 NSF Graduate Research Fellow 

"I learned a great deal during the Summer Bridge program and the experience has eased my worry about my preparation for graduate school.

I feel now that I know what to expect and what will be expected of me."

-Tashelle Wright
Ph.D. student in Public Health
2016 Summer Bridge cohort
2017 Summer Bridge mentor

“I found the adjusting to grad school panel really helpful for understanding how the more experienced students have coped with the challenges they have faced in graduate school.”

-Clement Laksana
Ph.D. student in Quantitative & Systems Biology
2016 Summer Bridge cohort
2017 Summer Bridge mentor

"It was great to be able to get a head start and feel more prepared for the upcoming semester.

This literally lessened my anxiety about starting grad school.”

-Sara Schneider
Ph.D. student in Cognitive & Information Sciences
2016 Summer Bridge cohort

2023-24 Cohort

2022-23 Cohort

2021-22 Cohort

2019-20 Cohort

2018-19 Cohort