CCAA Welcomes UC Merced

California Collegiate Athletic Association set to add University of California, Merced

(click to read press release from Nov. 14, 2023)

TIME LINE
CCAA SPORTS
QUICK FACTS

Year	Progress*	Status
Nov. 2023	CCAA Acceptance	CCAA Board of Presidents voted unanimously to admit UC Merced into CCAA
Feb. 2024	NCAA Application	UC Merced submits application to NCAA
2024-25	Year 1 of Division II Candidacy Period	UC Merced's final season in the NAIA
2025-26	Year 2 of Division II Candidacy Period	CCAA conference schedules to include UC Merced
2026-27	Active Membership in Division II	UC Merced to gain NCAA Division II active membership status (Fall 2026) Bobcats eligible for CCAA Championships Bobcats eligible for NCAA Championships

*as long as benchmarks are met during transition process

UC Merced currently sponsors the following CCAA sports:

Men's Sports	Women's Sports
Basketball	Basketball
Cross Country	Cross Country
Soccer	Soccer
Track & Field	Track & Field
	Volleyball

Nickname: Bobcats
Colors: Navy and Gold
Location: Merced, Calif.
Founded: 2005
University Chancellor: Dr. Juan Sanchez Munoz
Director of Athletics: David Dunham
Enrollment: 9,093
CCAA Sports: 9

Current Affiliation: NAIA
Current Conference: California Pacific Conference

Athletics Website

University Website

This is a momentous occasion for UC Merced, not just for our athletic program, but the entire university. We are excited to provide this opportunity for our student-athletes, as well as our supporters, as we transition to NCAA Division II and begin competing in the CCAA, one of the country’s most highly regarded Division II athletic conferences.

Dr. Juan Sánchez Muñoz, UC Merced’s chancellor

Introducing UC Merced

Where is UC Merced?
UC Merced is located in the center of California’s northern Central Valley. Merced is your quintessential small town, with a tree-lined downtown filled with mom-and-pop shops, restaurants and a theater, but with amenities that a larger town might have, such as a mall and larger eateries.

About UC Merced
UC Merced opened to undergraduates in 2005 as the newest campus in the University of California system and is the youngest university to earn a Carnegie research classification. A top-60 research university and the fastest-growing public university in the nation, UC Merced is on the cutting edge of sustainability in campus construction and design, and supports high-achieving and dedicated students from the Central Valley and throughout California.

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We are UC Merced

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