The University of Texas–Pan American

The University of Texas–Pan American (UTPA) Founded in 1927, is a state university located in Edinburg, Texas, it is a component institution of the University of Texas System. The university serves the Rio Grande Valley and South Texas with baccalaureate, masters-level, and doctoral degrees. The Carnegie Foundation classifies UTPA as a "doctoral research university". Since the institution's founding, it has grown from 200 students to over 20,000, making UTPA the tenth-largest university in the state of Texas. The majority of these students are natives of the Rio Grande Valley. UTPA also operates an Upper Level Studies Center in Rio Grande City, Starr County, Texas. On August 15, 2014, Havidan Rodriguez was appointed Interim President of UTPA.

U.S. News & World Report rates UTPA as a tier 2 University.

In Forbes' 2009 best college rankings that heavily weighted proportion of graduates who obtain a job upon graduation, UTPA ranked 32 among public universities and 218 among all universities. Among public schools in Texas, UTPA ranked only behind the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M.

In 2009 UTPA ranked behind only Florida International University for bachelor degrees awarded to Hispanic students.

According to the U.S. government, among schools with an enrollment of at least 5,000 students, UTPA ranked as the 2nd most affordable school in the nation.

In 2015, the UT–Brownsville, founded as an extension of then-Pan-American University at Texas Southmost College, will merge with UTPA, a new medical school will be added, and the resulting institution will be named the University of Texas–Rio Grande Valley.

On November 5, 2014, UTRGV's new nickname of Vaqueros was announced. Almost immediately, students on both campuses began objecting to the new name as a caricature and racial stereotype of Mexican, Latino, Chicano, and Hispanic culture. Two days after the new mascot was approved, the UTPA student government passed a resolution in opposition, and three days later, hundreds of students rallied on the Edinburg campus to protest the new name.

The University includes the following seven academic divisions:

College of Arts and Humanities

College of Business Administration

College of Education

College of Engineering and Computer Science

College of Health Sciences and Human Services

College of Science and Mathematics

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences

College of Physics and Geology

Pathway leading toward the Science and Engineering buildings.

The university offers a wide variety of degrees spanning across seven colleges. Currently, there are 56 bachelor's degrees, 56 master's degrees, three doctoral degrees, and two cooperative doctoral programs.