The goal of the UROC-H program is to engage promising UC Merced undergraduate students each year in faculty-mentored research during the summer and prepare them for advanced education in the humanities and humanistic social sciences.
"The term 'humanities' includes, but is not limited to, the study and interpretation of the following: language, both modern and classical; linguistics; literature; history; jurisprudence; philosophy; archaeology; comparative religion; ethics; the history, criticism and theory of the arts; those aspects of social sciences which have humanistic content and employ humanistic methods; and the study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to reflecting our diverse heritage, traditions, and history and to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life."
--National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act, 1965, as amended
APPLY HERE
Spring 2026 Application open from November 1st, 2025 through December 7th, 2025!
Undocumented students are eligible for this program
Program Eligibility and Requirements:
You selected UROC-H as the primary UROC program you would like to be considered for. To be eligible for selection, each applicant must:
- Be currently enrolled in a UC Merced undergraduate degree program through Spring 2026
- Interested in conducting Humanities Research in the following majors or disciplines: Anthropology & Heritage Studies, Global Arts, Media & Written Studies, History, CRES, Literature & Languages, Sociology, Philosophy & Public Health
- Be in good academic standing with the unviersity, 3.0 GPA preferred, but not required
- Be in good academic standing with a cumulative GPA of 3.0, preferred but not required
- Be able to demonstrate potential for success in a graduate program
- Priority will be given to first- generation college students and underrepresented minoritized students
The following materials are needed to complete the UROC-H application:
- UROC-H online application form
- Essay responses, as described in the online application
- One letter of recommendation (from a faculty member preferred)
- One unofficial transcript from the my.ucmerced.edu portal
- Resume or CV
UROC-H will provide undergraduate scholars:
- Mentorship by a faculty mentor and/or graduate student
- $1,200 Undergraduate Research Fellowship:
- Graduate school preparation & career coaching
Undocumented students are eligible for this program.
This collaborative program led by UROC, the Graduate Division, and the School of Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts is made possible through a grant from the Mellon Foundation.
About the Mellon Foundation
The Mellon Foundation is the nation’s largest supporter of the arts and humanities. Since 1969, the Foundation has been guided by its core belief that the humanities and arts are essential to human understanding. The Foundation believes that the arts and humanities are where we express our complex humanity, and that everyone deserves the beauty, transcendence, and freedom that can be found there. Through our grants, we seek to build just communities enriched by meaning and empowered by critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive. Learn more at mellon.org.
Spring 2026 Application open from November 1st, 2025 through December 7th, 2025!
Undocumented students are eligible for this program.
Want to learn more?
Interested in learning more about the program that’s right for you? Email UROC at uroc@ucmerced.edu or schedule an appointment with the Outreach Advisor:
Horacio Aguilar: Schedule an Appointment
