University of Texas System
The University of Texas System is an American government entity of the state of Texas that includes 14 higher educational institutions throughout the state including eight universities and six health institutions. The UT System is headquartered in Downtown Austin, and has a total enrollment of nearly 240,000 students and employs 21,000 faculty and more than 83,000 health care professionals,researchers and support staff. The UT System's $30 billion endowment is the largest of any public university system in the United States. As of 2018, Reuters ranks the UT System among the top 10 most innovative academic institutions in the world.
Component institutions
Academic Institutions
The University of Texas System has eight separate and distinct 4-year academic institutions; each is a university and confers its own degrees.UT Brownsville & UT Pan American (UTRGV) merger
On June 14, 2013, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed into law, officially approving the creation of a new university in South Texas within the UT System, officially replacing UT Brownsville and UT Pan American. The initiative resulted in a single institution, including a medical school, spanning the entire Rio Grande Valley, with a presence in each of the major metropolitan areas of Brownsville, Edinburg, Harlingen, and McAllen. On December 12, 2013, the UT Board of Regents voted to name the new university the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. The new university began full operation in the 2015–16 school year.| Official name | Official abbreviations | Location | Founded | Joined system | Merged | Refs |
| The University of Texas at Brownsville | UTB UT Brownsville | Brownsville | 1973 | 1991 | 2015 | |
| The University of Texas–Pan American | UTPA UT Pan American | Edinburg | 1927 | 1989 | 2015 |
Health Institutions
The University of Texas System has six independent health institutions along with two medical schools located at two academic institutions: UT Austin and UT Rio Grande Valley.At this time, all six health institutions are not officially affiliated with or organized under any of the 4-year academic institutions. However, many do have close relationships and special joint programs with them due to close geographic location or by maintaining historical connections.
Independent UT Health institutions
Medical schools within academic institutions
UT Tyler & UT HSC Tyler (UTT) merger
In December 2019, the UT System Board of Regents unanimously agreed to merge The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler under The University of Texas at Tyler, creating a single unified institution. Two months later, the UT System formally announced its intention to establish a new medical school that will be added under the new unified UT Tyler administration. It will be the first medical school in the East Texas region.The process to integrate the two institutions is in the early stages and university leaders hope to welcome students in 2021. The medical school is expected to open in 2023.
Attempted academic & health institution mergers
Dallas-Fort WorthIn 2001 the 77th Texas Legislature proposed HB 3568, which would have merged all Dallas-Fort Worth UT System institutions under the name "The University of Texas at Dallas". UTD's Richardson campus would've been designated as the main campus, UTA's Arlington campus would've become a satellite campus, and UTSW's Dallas campus would've become the merged university's medical school. The purpose was to help the metroplex gain one unified flagship-level university, but the House Bill ultimately failed to pass due to objections from UT Arlington and the lack of time to properly explain the complex process to state representatives.
San Antonio
Nine years later, in 2010, a study was commissioned to explore the possibility of merging UT San Antonio and UT Health San Antonio. Officials ultimately decided against it, citing significant costs, administrative challenges, and different university cultures. In 2016, an op-ed published in the San Antonio Express-News urged the UT System Board of Regents to reconsider their decision, but no further actions from the UT System have been taken since.
Students
Administration
The administrative offices are in Downtown Austin. The UT system approved moving the system headquarters in November 2012. Bonds from the UT System's endowment funded the construction of the new 19-story, headquarters, which had a price tag of $102 million. The UT System planned to lease a portion of the facility for shops and other offices, with the approximately remaining portion used for its own employees. The system headquarters opened on August 1, 2017.In July 2018, the Pentagon announced it had selected the UT System administrative building as the headquarters for the Army Futures Command, a new organization committed to coordinating modernization efforts and integrating innovation across the Army.
The University of Texas System was previously headquartered in O. Henry Hall in Downtown Austin. The system headquarters complex previously included multiple buildings, which had 550 employees in 2014. These facilities included O. Henry Hall, Claudia Taylor Johnson Hall, Ashbel Smith Hall, the Colorado Building, and the Lavaca Building,
In 2013 the UT system approved the demolitions of the Colorado Building and the Lavaca Building, and the new UT System headquarters was built where these buildings previously stood. The Texas State University System purchased O. Henry Hall in 2015 for $8.2 million; the UT System leased it and continued using it as its administrative headquarters prior to the 2017 completion of the UT System's current headquarters. The UT System leased the land containing Claudia Taylor Johnson Hall and Ashbel Smith Hall to Trammell Crow which is constructing a commercial property on the site that uses the facade of Johnson Hall. Ashbel Smith Hall was imploded on March 25, 2018.
Coordinated Admissions Program
The Coordinated Admissions Program offers some UT Austin applicants the chance to attend the university if they complete their freshman year at another system school and meet specified requirements. Each institution in the University of Texas System sets its own admissions standards, and not all schools may accept a particular CAP student.UT Dallas does not participate in the CAP program, and UTSA, the largest recipient of CAP students, has stated it will be phasing out the program within the next ten years.