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Undergraduate Programs

Students in Mechatronics lab

Engineering is about problem solving, innovation and the creation of devices, systems, processes and structures for human use. Engineers create new ideas and transform them into products and services that improve people's lives. Engineers apply mathematics and the principles of science -- particularly chemistry and physics -- to solve problems and meet society’s needs.

Freshmen engineering students at UC Merced share a common curriculum. In this first year, they are encouraged to learn more about all seven (7) of our majors, including a Management Analytics and Decision-Making (MAD) and Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) minor, to make sure their declared major is the best fit for their interests (see below for more information). Changing your major sophomore year is easy to do.

Majors & Minors

Major

Bioengineering is a highly interdisciplinary field in which the techniques, devices, materials and resourcefulness of engineers are used to address problems in biology and healthcare; and lessons from biology are used to inspire design and inform progress in engineering. 

Major

The undergraduate major in Civil Engineering prepares students for careers in both private and public organizations concerned with managing air quality, water quality and supply, greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, infrastructure, energy systems, public health, and the long-term social, economic, and environmental welfare of our society. The program is also a good foundation for further study in engineering, earth science, business, management, law, policy, planning, and public health.

Major

Computer Science and Engineering students at UC Merced work with the world's top computer scientists and engineers. Our program combines practical exposure to the most modern technologies available with a theoretical foundation that empowers students to master future changes and innovations as technologies continue to evolve at an astonishing pace.

Major

Our undergraduate Electrical Engineering major starts in the fall 2023 semester. Students will have a unique opportunity to create new traditions for a new program in a well-established engineering field. Today we rely on electricity for almost everything. Thus, our society relies on electrical engineers, from the electrical grid that brings reliable electricity to every building to the smart phone in your pocket. The program will teach fundamentals of engineering and electricity while introducing students to real-world problems and opportunities.

Major

Environmental engineers are distinguished from other environmental professionals through their focus on problem solving, design and implementation of technological or management systems. In our program, you'll learn how to search for creative and economical ways to use resources efficiently, limit the release of residuals into the environment, develop sensitive techniques to track pollutants once released and find effective methods to remediate spoiled resources.

Minor

The department of Management of Complex Systems oversees the Management Analytics and Decision-Making (MAD) minor. This interdisciplinary minor fosters analytical skills, communication skills, and critical thinking about managing data and analytics in complex environments, and will provide you the tools to collect, analyze, manage, visualize and communicate data for diverse management focusing on People, Planet, and Profit.

Major

Since the beginning of civilization, technological progress has always relied on the materials that people were able to acquire from nature or through trade or by innovation. Wood, stone, bronze, iron, steel, aluminum, cements, plastics, semiconductors, liquid crystals, nanomaterials and quantum dots all have unique properties that enable — but also limit — what humans can make and do.

Minor

The new MSE minor opens this Fall 2021. The new minor is the first, and currently only, engineering minor offered at UC Merced; it is open to students in all three Schools who meet the prerequisites for the 20 required units.

Please note that while the MSE minor will appear in the 2022-23 catalog, it is active for enrollment this academic year 2021-22.

Major

Because of the variety of fields that are relevant to this profession, our undergraduate program covers areas in dynamics, materials, thermal/fluids, vibrations, controls, computer aided engineering, design and manufacturing. The innovative curriculum at UC Merced provides hands-on education that exposes students to engineering fundamentals, laboratory work and the use of computational tools to solve realistic engineering problems.