The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is forging dramatic new directions in higher education. UTEP has become a national model for creating and successfully executing highly competitive academic and research programs while maintaining a deep commitment to serving a 21st century student demographic. It is this dedication to providing access and excellence to students in the region that has resulted in UTEP becoming a top tier research university with a Mexican-American majority student population. The university offers 166 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs in 10 colleges and schools. It maintains one of the lowest out-of-pocket costs of any research university in the U.S., underscoring its commitment to make education accessible to all. The Brookings Institution, a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., ranked UTEP No.1 among all U.S. public universities for successful achievement in both competitive research and student social mobility. UTEP is the top university in the continental United States for graduating Hispanic students who go on to earn doctoral degrees in STEM fields. It also is recognized as one of the top universities in the U.S. for the number of Hispanic graduates in biological and biomedical sciences, accounting and related services, engineering, homeland security, and law enforcement and related protective services. UTEP is an urban, public university located in El Paso, Texas, a growing community of more than 840,000 which, together with Juárez, Mexico, forms one of the world’s largest bi-national metropolitan areas. El Paso’s attractive and affordable living conditions and broad range of unique cultural and intellectual options, and the surrounding region’s beautiful mountain desert terrain, abundant sunshine and outdoor recreational opportunities, combine to offer a highly satisfying quality of life.