Brenda Ortiz

When first-generation mechanical engineering student David Miguel arrived at UC Merced, he had no research experience, but a passion for engineering and a desire to learn.

A former foster care youth from Los Angeles, Miguel had limited resources to pursue science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). His interest in mechanical engineering was sparked at a community fair, an experience that led him to start a general engineering club at his high school.

Editor's note: This story is republished from the Spring/Summer 2026 issue of UC Merced Magazine.

Omar DeGuchy remembers the moment he left the comfort of UC Merced — the place he’d found his footing — and stepped onto what some call “the smartest square mile on Earth.” He defended his Ph.D. dissertation in applied mathematics remotely in 2020 and started a job at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL).

Ten UC Merced graduate researchers are gearing up to deliver the most intense three minutes of their academic careers.

Each spring, master’s and Ph.D. students across the campus’s three schools are invited to participate in Grad Slam — a fast‑paced competition that challenges scholars to distill their cutting‑edge research into a crisp, engaging presentation for a general audience.

Simone Samra’s dedication to education and community work is influenced by her mother's experience immigrating from India and her belief in the power of education for immigrant women.

Samra is keenly aware of the barriers immigrants face when attempting to transfer their education or degrees, often limiting their career options.

“If you don't get the opportunity to use your education in America, it can be very discouraging,” said Samra, who graduated from John H. Pitman High School in Turlock.

Nervous but prepared, Tahirah Williams took the stage at UC Merced’s Grad Slam competition in March and delivered her three-minute talk, “More Than Slime: When Mucus Meets the Valley Fever Invader.” By day’s end, she had been announced as the university’s 12th Grad Slam Campus Champion.

UC Merced saw broad gains in the U.S. News and World Report 2026 Best Graduate Schools rankings with graduate programs rising in national standing, reflecting the campus’s growing academic and research profile.

Most weekdays, civil engineering major Jacqueline Garcia travels 45 minutes each way from her hometown of Hughson to attend classes at UC Merced.

“The perk is being able to pursue my undergraduate degree while still having a tie to home. It's been great having the campus here in the Valley,” she said.

While she has enjoyed living at home while attending a UC campus, the third-year undergraduate student said commuting does pose some challenges. Early on, she often went home right after class, making it harder to join evening activities.

Applications are open for the 2026 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Data Science Challenge, a two-week summer internship that gives students a firsthand look at national lab research through high‑impact, data‑driven problem solving.

Physics Ph.D. candidate Arabi Seshappan added two prestigious fellowships to her curriculum vitae: the Chateaubriand Fellowship in Science, Technology, Engineering Mathematics & Biology-Health and the UC President's Pre-Professoriate Fellowship.