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All incoming first-year students are required to live on campus for two academic years.*
Benefits of living on campus:
- Barbecue grills
- Bicycle storage
- Computer labs
- Dance room
- Game rooms
- Internet access
- Laundry rooms
- Study rooms
- Joseph Edward Gallo Recreation and Wellness Center
- Outdoor basketball and tennis courts
- Two new outdoor recreation fields
An enhanced living experience that integrates an academic field of study and living with similar-minded student scholars
- Fiat Lux Scholars
- Natural Sciences Learning Communities
- Leadership and Service Learning Community
- AFRO Hall
- Sophomore Experience
- Transfer Living Learning Community
UC Merced offers unlimited dining meal plans, which are mandatory for on-campus residents to make sure all students are properly nourished. Meal plans are mandatory because residence halls do not have kitchen facilities that allow students to cook meals on a regular basis.
What meal plans are provided?
Each meal plan provides students with unlimited access to the all-you-care-to-eat Pavilion Dining Center, as well as various amounts of Cat Dollars to be used for meal purchases at on-campus retail locations.
Learn more about meal plan options here.
First-year students are not eligible to purchase on-campus parking permits; however, those who meet specific criteria can file a petition.
Ways to get around Merced:
What’s included in a housing contract?
- Furnished room (extra-long twin bed, desk, chair, drawer and closet space)
- High-speed Internet
- All utilities except telephone
- Programs and activities
Do I need to pay the whole contract amount at once?
No. Although the contract commitment is for a full academic year, you are billed by the semester. You have the option to pay the semester in full (about half the total contract amount) or you can apply for the Deferred Payment Plan (DPP).
Ensuring students’ safety and security and that of our community is the UC Merced Police Department’s top priority. Our highly trained officers, public safety dispatchers and Community Service Officers are here to serve students 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
Emergency Blue Lights are direct lines to dispatch located around campus. In an emergency, anyone can use the blue lights to talk directly to dispatch to get assistance quickly or request a safety escort.
Online bike and electronics registration increases the chance that they will be recovered if stolen.
Some ways we distribute urgent emergency information:
- Online: Alerts, bulletins and emails from the Police Department
- Messages sent to your cell phone and/or email addresses using UCM Alert, UC Merced’s emergency notification system
- Pop-up messages on your desktop computer or laptop via the Alertus notification system
- Verbal announcements via the campus public announcement system
Students may request an exemption from the two-year residency requirement if they meet any of the following criteria. The Residency Exemption Form must be submitted (along with documentation) on the Housing Portal by June 1, 2021. Please note, if you make changes to your housing your financial aid award could be effected.
- Student lives with parent(s) or legal guardian in the county of Merced, defined as a physical address within commutable distance (approx. 45 miles) of UC Merced’s campus.
- Student has previously completed two (2) years of full-time college enrollment at an accredited institution of higher education (with at least 60 units, i.e., is an upper-division transfer).
- Student turns 21 years of age on or before the first day of classes for the fall term of the academic year.
- Student is an honorably discharged veteran.
- Student is or becomes legally married (proof of legal marriage required); OR student is or becomes the biological parent or legal guardian of a dependent child.
- Student participates in student teaching, academic internship, or a special University program that requires the student to be away from the UC Merced campus for the semester or major portion thereof.
- Medical and disability circumstances (Exemption requests for this reason will be forwarded to the UC Merced Student Accessibility Services for review and approval).
- Special circumstances that exist which would create a substantial personal hardship, that is exacerbated by living on campus and cannot be remedied. Documented verification of the special circumstance is required.
For questions or concerns please call 209-228-2293 or housing@ucmerced.edu
For more information on how to submit a residency exemption, please click here.