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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, MERCED
People, Planet and Profit Give New Management Program its Unique Focus
UC Merced’s first professional degree program will equip tomorrow's leaders with comprehensive solutions to the intricate challenges the world presents.
Colleen Cheverko and Maria-Elena Young
Campus Awards Chancellor’s Postdoc Fellowships
Postdoctoral researchers Colleen Cheverko and Maria-Elena Young received UC Merced's Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship for 2018-2019.
Postdoctoral fellow Jaapna Dhillon
Postdoc Earns Grant to Study Health Disparities
Jaapna Dhillon is the campus’s first postdoctoral researcher to receive NIH Pathway to Independence Award.Jaapna Dhillon is the campus’s first postdoctoral researcher to receive NIH...
Environmental Systems Graduate Student Vicky Espinoza
Environmental Systems Student's Research Helps to Address Climate Change
Graduate student Vicky Espinoza and UC Merced professors helped write the San Joaquin Valley section of the Fourth California Climate Change Assessment. 
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Dreamers Welcome

UC Merced supports undocumented students and and stands by Dreamers. 

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Diversity & Inclusion

We strive to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our community.

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Graduate Resources

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Featured News

$10M Grant Will Help Increase Hispanics in Computing

October 18, 2018

UC Merced is part of a consortium of more than 40 institutions and organizations from the public and private sectors at the forefront of a national effort to increase the number of Hispanic students...

Health Communication Researcher Working to Improve Internet-based Medical Information

October 17, 2018

If you’re an American with Internet access, you’ve probably done it. You get a headache, a sniffle or a mystery bruise, and instead of seeing your doctor, you consult “Dr. Google.” According to some...

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Applied Mathematics

Biological Engineering & Small-Scale Technologies (BEST)

Chemistry and Chemical Biology

Cognitive and Information Sciences

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Environmental Systems

Interdisciplinary Humanities

Mechanical Engineering

Quantitative and Systems Biology

Physics

Political Science

Psychological Sciences
“There’s so much academic freedom here; it’s a tremendously unique opportunity.”
 
David Ando
Physics
“The fact that this is a smaller school was very attractive to me. You can get to know everyone in your graduate cohort, and it’s a great environment for research.”
 
Edwin Shen
Biological Engineering and Small-Scale Technologies
“Many other options for graduate school seem to come prepackaged with a defined future, or to create only a specific type of graduate. UC Merced has encouraged me to forge my own path and has provided an opportunity to expand and contrast my interests at my own pace.”
 
David Vinson
Cognitive & Informations Sciences
“I chose UC Merced because I liked the idea of being part of a smaller group where the faculty knew who I was and were excited to work with me.”
 
Neama Alamri
Interdisciplinary Humanities
“Our sociology graduate program is so diverse - it makes such a difference in the overall experience of being a student here.”
 
Wendy Puquirre
Sociology
“Research is founded on being able to figure out problems - our groups are so close that we all talk and know about each other’s projects, which really helps to inject interesting ideas and methods into our work.”
 
Bridget Martinez
Quantitative & Systems Biology

Faculty Profile

Kara McCloskey

Associate Professor
Dr. McCloskey is the founder and first chair of the Biological Engineering and Small-scale Technologies (BEST) graduate program and serves as the university liaison for the UC Systemwide Bioengineering Multicampus Research Unit.
kmccloskey@ucmerced.edu

Dave Ardell

Assistant Professor
Dr. Ardell is the chair of the Quantitative & Systems Biology graduate program. His research focuses on computational biology and evolution of gene expression mechanisms. 
dardell@ucmerced.edu

Arturo Arias

Professor and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Chair
aarias26@ucmerced.edu

Marc Beutel

Associate Professor and Graduate Chair of Environmental Systems
mbeutel@ucmerced.edu

Harish Bhat

Associate Professor and chair of the Applied Mathematics Graduate Group
hbhat@ucmerced.edu

Paul Brown

Professor
Dr. Brown is the Chair of Public Health and the Director of the  Health Sciences Research Institute at UC Merced. His research interests include Public Health Systems and Services Research (PHSSR), cancer prevention and control, discrete choice experiments, and behavioral economics. 
pbrown3@ucmerced.edu
Thomas G. Hansford

Thomas G. Hansford

Associate Professor and chair of the Political Science Graduate Group
thansford@ucmerced.edu

Linda S. Hirst

Professor and chair of the Physics Graduate Group
lhirst@ucmerced.edu

Ashlie Martini

Associate Professor
Dr. Martini is the chair of the Mechanical Engineering graduate group. Her research focus is application of atomic-scale models and micro-scale friction measurements to understand fundamental mechanisms underlying tribological phenomena.
amartini@ucmerced.edu

Peggy O'Day

Professor
Dr. O'Day is the chair of the Environmental Systems graduate group. She studies the chemistry, reaction, and transport of inorganic contaminants and species, primarily metal and metalloid elements, in surface and subsurface systems.
poday@ucmerced.edu

Anna Song

Assistant Professor, Psychological Sciences
Dr. Song's primary research interest is adolescent and young adult decision-making as it pertains to risk behaviors.
asong5@ucmerced.edu
Zulema Valdez

Zulema Valdez

Associate Professor and chair of the Sociology graduate group
zvaldez@ucmerced.edu