For more than 140 years, The University of Texas System (the “U.T. System”) has improved the lives of Texans and people all over the world through education, health care and research.
With enrollment of more than 256,000 students at academic and health institutions across the state, as well as an operating budget of $33.3 billion, the U.T. System is one of the largest public university systems in the nation and the world. U.T. institutions are powerful drivers of economic and social mobility in Texas, producing more than 66,000 graduates annually, including more than one third of the state’s undergraduate degrees and about 63% of the state’s medical degrees. Almost half of all undergraduate degrees are awarded to students who qualify for a Pell grant based on financial need while enrolled at a U.T. institution.
Approximately 90% of graduates who earned their degrees from U.T. institutions secure jobs in Texas within a year after graduating, providing a skilled workforce and fueling the state’s economy. In fact, U.T. graduates who entered the Texas workforce between 2002 and 2022 had cumulative earnings through 2023 of more than $400 billion.
The U.T. System is one of the largest employers in Texas, with more than 160,000 faculty, health care professionals, researchers, support staff and student workers.
Creating a healthier Texas is a fundamental mission of U.T. institutions. Collectively, U.T. owned and affiliated hospitals and clinics account for nearly 10.8 million outpatient visits and more than 2.1 million hospital days in 2023. In addition to world class patient care, U.T. researchers are on the front lines of advancing treatments and therapies for deadly and debilitating diseases. Total annual research expenditures across the U.T. institutions exceeds $4.3 billion, and the U.T. System ranks No. 1 in Texas and No. 2 in the nation in federal research expenditures among public higher education systems.
Healthcare expansion plans were announced in August 2023 regarding a monumental healthcare initiative to accelerate and expand U.T. Austin’s medical district into a world-class academic medical center for education, research and patient care. This will involve a collaboration that combines U.T. Austin’s computational expertise with U.T.M.D. Anderson’s data on cancer patients and treatment in a joint location in Austin. In October of 2024, U.T. Southwestern Medical Center and Children’s Health, both based in Dallas, broke ground on a $5 billion pediatric campus. Once complete, the campus will be one of the nation’s largest pediatric hospitals. In December of 2024, U.T. Health Science Center - San Antonio Multi-specialty and Research Hospital opened as best-in-class hospital to deliver specialty surgeries, advanced treatments and comprehensive cancer care including immunologic and stem cell therapies.
Transformational initiatives implemented over the past several years continue to cement U.T. System as a national leader in higher education, including the expansion of educational opportunities in South Texas with the opening of U.T. Rio Grande Valley and its medical school in 2015 , the combining of U.T. Tyler and U.T. Health Science Center – Tyler in 2020 and the opening of its medical school in the fall of 2023 as the seventh U.T. medical school. On September 1, 2023, the Board of Regents welcomed Stephen F. Austin State University as the 14th U.T. System institution following approval by the 88th Texas Legislature. In August of 2024, a plan was announced to integrate U.T. San Antonio with U.T. Health San Antonio into a premier global university that combines healthcare, biosciences, national security and data science to create a powerful, singular entity. In September of 2024, U.T. El Paso announced the reestablishment of the Mining Engineering Program with the program slated to launch in Fall 2027 and address the growing demand for mining engineers in Texas and across the U.S. In April 2025, U.T. Arlington broke ground on the new UTA West with cutting-edge academic and research facilities designed to bring together students, faculty and industry leaders to drive innovation and workforce readiness for the fast-growing west Fort Worth region.
At U.T. institutions, the average student debt not only has steadily declined over the past five years, but it is also 10% lower, on average, than across Texas public four-year universities. Moreover, the percentage of U.T. graduates with debt has declined from 53.6% in 2019 to 47.8% in 2023. Critical workforce degree programs like nursing, computer science, accounting, and biology, reveal fewer than 45% of U.T. graduates take on debt. In November 2024, U.T. System approved an investment to expand the Promise Plus program established in 2022 for academic institutions to supplement existing financial aid programs allowing more need-based qualified students to attend U.T. institutions without accruing debt for tuition or mandatory fees.
With the Texas population expected to grow dramatically in the years to come, the U.T. System will continue to lead in driving prosperity, innovation and health for the people of the Lone Star State.
