“I delayed graduation to do Quarter at Aggie Square, hoping it was a worthwhile use of my time and money. And luckily it was!”  Amrit Bains, a UC Davis senior, said about her experience, at the program’s year-end celebration. She also discussed the impact of students working closely with faculty and one another as her favorite highlight of the program.

The annual Quarter at Aggie Square celebration wrapped up a full year of programming totaling four quarters and highlighted the program’s efforts to combine subject matter from multiple fields for students on UC Davis’s Sacramento campus. Students and faculty participants shared their experiences and the impact of their course work. 

“One of the goals is helping students become well-versed in the sociocultural and historical factors that influence health care and the social, economic and political systems through which it is delivered,” said Associate Professor Emily Merchant reflecting on the importance of the Advancing Health Care Equity experience.

This program, out of UC Davis Undergraduate Education, provides quarter-long experiences that blend academic coursework and experiential learning through internships, research, or clinical rotation within the Sacramento area — all focused on a core area of interest. Classes will take place in the new Aggie Square complex in spring 2025. This innovation hub for UC Davis will house research programs, private industry partners, classrooms and student housing. 

This year’s Quarter at Aggie Square experiences included:

• Biomedical Engineering at the Health Campus
• Plants, People and the Planet
• Advancing Health Care Equity
• Immigrants, Refugees and Human Rights

 “This program offers a transformational experience that allows students to bridge course work with applied experiential learning in multiple ways, on a variety of topics,” said Brianne Holden, Quarter at Aggie Square director.

Undergraduate Education offers several hands-on learning experiences for students, known as experiential learning. Angela Taylor, director of experiential learning and site-based programs for Undergraduate Education, said this learning style is essential to students’ education. 

“A critical component of any experiential learning program is its immersive nature,” Taylor said. “These students take the entire quarter’s courses with the same group. Given this structure and the small size — 12 to 15 students — there is a high level of faculty and student engagement.” 

 Learn more about Quarter at Aggie Square and other experiential learning initiatives at UC Davis. You can contact the staff through email or the student interest form.  See a list of the other programs within the Office of Undergraduate Education on the website.