The University of Texas Rio Grand Valley: Courses, Admission, Cost

Also called UTRGV, the University Of Texas Rio Grande Valley was established in 2013 as the 1st major open university in the state of Texas after Texas Southmost College and the University of Texas-Pan American are consolidated. It is an open research university that maintains several campuses across the Rio Grande Valley region of the state. The university is also the part of the University of Texas System and is officially certified with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to grant graduate, postgraduate and doctorate degrees. In 2019, the university has received a total student enrollment of more than 29,619 students. Receiving such a huge number, the university becomes the 9th largest university in Texas and the 4th largest educational institution in the University of Texas system. The university is among the largest universities in the nation to have a large population of Hispanic students as 89.2% of its students are Hispanic.

The university occupies a total area of around 686 acres with more than 100 buildings. It offers around 64 bachelors, 49 masters and 4 doctoral programmes across 13 colleges and schools. Apart from this, it offers two cooperative doctoral programmes. The university is known for offering programmes in health professions, education and engineering. As per the data of 2017, it is home to more than 24,634 undergraduate and over 3,175 postgraduate students. In addition to this, the Vaqueros, athletic teams, take parts in the NCAA's Division I. Students can also enjoy being a part of other sports clubs, including flag football, chess, softball and soccer.

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley has successfully graduated thousands of students who are now contributing to different areas of society. Some of the known alumni of the university include Gloria Anzaldúa (Novelist, Educator and Cultural Theorist), Jose Luis Betancourt, Jr. (Retired Rear Admiral of the US Navy), David Bowles (Author, Poet and Translator), Mike Brisky (ex-member of the PGA), Roberto Collado Anzaldúa (Filmmaker and Director) and Oscar Cásares (Writer)