Welcome Back Bobcats
Welcome Back Festivities: August 22 to September 20, 2024
Hello Fellow Bobcats!
Welcome Back Festivities is the second step (after New Student Orientation) in your transition to the University of California, Merced.
Welcome Back Festivities is a twenty-four-day experience that begins when students arrive on campus and continues through the beginning of the second month of classes. You will meet fellow new students, spend time with your major and department, learn more about UC Merced, and explore the Merced community. Welcome Back Festivities will help you feel more comfortable and confident as you start your experience at UC Merced and begin classes, not to mention it is a lot of fun!
The welcome back festivities program is intended to address the following service and learning outcomes:
- Students will increase their integration into UC Merced's academic and social communities and traditions
- Students will increase their knowledge of academic expectations, processes, and available resources
- Students will access and navigate the campus and available resources
- Students will engage in behaviors that contribute to a healthy and positive environment
We know that students who attend Welcome Back Festivities are more confident when they start classes because they have had time to meet friends, navigate campus and get settled. Welcome Back Festivities introduces and builds upon various communities within the University of California, Merced.
Academic Link
Involvement Link
For events and activities through the year visit caltlife.ucmerced.edu.
If you have any questions, please call the Office of Student Involvement at 209-228-5433 or email us at studentinvolvement.edu. We look forward to seeing y’all soon!
Sincerely,
Enrique M. Guzman
DIRECTOR / ASUCM ADVISOR
OFFICE OF STUDENT INVOLVEMENT
5200 Lake Road | Merced, California 95343
studentinvolvement.ucmerced.edu | 209.675.8046
What's New?
Here at UC Merced, we are going through lots of changes even more than just the size of the campus. Here at the Office of Student Involvement, we are also trying our best to create change to make access to our students much easier. That is why we have decided to move Cat life to a much easier and more appealing Platform( presence). Through our new cat-life Platform it is much easier to find organizations to register events and create forms. These changes will help our students to become more involved with the website and we also hope that it will help the nonaffiliated and first-year students to learn more about the various clubs and organizations here on our campus.
What is Welcome Back Festivities ?
With all of our students coming back this fall we want to make sure we give the opportunity to students who have never experienced UC Merced. Welcome Back Festivities is a great opportunity for the students to come out and participate in a lot of fun activities. Here at the office of student involvement, we want to ensure that our students feel welcomed and that they have a sense of belonging. For the underclassmen, this is a great opportunity to meet a lot of new people and to start to begin finding those friends you will be interacting with throughout undergrad. We hope the Welcome Back Festivities is a great experience for all students and that it is a great way to kickstart the 2024 Fall semester.
What's happening during Welcome Festivities?
Welcome Back 2024 features numerous ways to get into the Bobcat Spirit! The Bobcat Hangouts include arts, activities, games, and a photo booth. There will be opportunities for you to win FREE UC Merced gear. This is a great way to connect with people and to make friends!
How do I register events for my club/organization?
This tab is still under construction. Apologies for the inconvenience.
Resources
Calvin E. Bright Success Center
CARE Office
Center for Career and Professional Advancement (CCPA)
Counseling and Psychological Services
Health Promotion
Health Services
Office of the Ombuds
Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities
Services for Undocumented Students
Student Accessibility Services
UC Merced Police Department
Veteran Services
Communication about Joining a club and org info:
Are you a non-affiliated student? Looking for a club that might suit you? Well Throughout the semester various organizations will be tabling and fundraising all around campus. This is a great opportunity to learn about the various organizations on campus. We will also be hosting Club and organization fairs called greetings to meetings where we will have weeks of tabling for different categories of organizations and clubs that we have here. Can't make it to tabling? Our new Cat life Platform provides students with the opportunity to search for clubs or events to begin their own. Using Cat life you will be able to see information on clubs and organizations and their purpose for what they do. You will also be able to see the meeting times and location so that you could walk in or dial into their meetings and become a member.
How to Create an Organization
Creating an Organization has never been easier. Here at UC Merced, we welcome all students to join an RCO and if there is not one that you like then you could always create your own. First, you're going to want to gather a minimum of 4 members and 1 on-campus advisor. This on-campus advisor can be a staff member, faculty member, or graduate student with permission. If you need help finding an advisor, please reach out to the OSI staff for help. Once, you are done with that task you are going to want to create a constitution that goes hand and hand with university policies. Here is a template for you to use! You will then Register the Organization with the following link https://ucmerced.presence.io/form/organization-registration. Once your organization is registered the Office of Student involvement will work on the approval process. Once Approved congratulations! You are now a registered RCO.
How can I meet new people?
Be sure to come to OSI events and any other events listed on CatLife and the UC Merced Events Calendar!
