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Strategic Plan

Vision, Mission & Aspirations

UT Dallas has capitalized on its origins and location, transforming into a large and selective public university. The future requires that the University continues to strive for excellence in all academic areas with a commitment to its guiding principles, including a prioritization of fairness and belonging at every level of the institution.

UTD grad at commencement

Our Vision

To be one of the nation’s best public research universities and one of the great universities of the world.

Our Mission

The University of Texas at Dallas provides the State of Texas and the nation with excellent, innovative education and research. The University is committed to graduating well-rounded members of the global community whose education has prepared them for rewarding lives and productive careers in a constantly changing world; to continually improving educational and research programs in the humanities, arts, sciences, engineering and management; and to assisting the commercialization of intellectual capital generated by students, staff and faculty.

 

students at the skywalk of the Bioengineering and Sciences Building

Our Goals

The University of Texas at Dallas aspires to be:

  1. A top-tier public research university with collaborative centers of excellence, prepared to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing, technology-driven global society.
  2. An institution that affirms public trust in higher education through intentional efforts to promote access to the educational experience.
  3. A force in innovative, transdisciplinary research and education in emerging areas of technology, science and learning.
  4. A groundbreaking leader in both framing and answering the questions faced by business, policymakers, health care and the public.
  5. A synergistic partner with local industry, government and cultural organizations as well as local K-12 schools, community colleges and universities.
  6. A community where students and professionals are engaged with one another so that our graduates understand what it means to live, work and thrive in a diverse national and global society.
  7. A responsible global citizen that enthusiastically attends to our duty to create a sustainable environment.
  8. One of the most creative and innovative universities in the world.

 

students view the fireworks at the campus mall

Our Story

Chronicling the accomplishments of The University of Texas at Dallas remains imperative to the University’s vision and a source of pride for stakeholders. The fact that Times Higher Education recently ranked UT Dallas among the top universities in the United States less than 50 years old might be adequate to satisfy the curiosities of some. But the story of UT Dallas extends beyond this one measure. Consider some of the University’s other notable achievements:

UT Dallas has been recognized as one of the best values in U.S. higher education by several respected publications, including Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, The Princeton Review, Forbes, Money Magazine and U.S. News & World Report.
In 2017, UT Dallas met the requirements to receive funding allocations from the State of Texas National Research University Fund.
Since 2000, enrollment has increased from 11,000 to more than 28,000 students.
In 2015, Aziz Sancar PhD’77 became the first alumnus to win the Nobel Prize.
The University’s first comprehensive campaign, which concluded in 2014, raised $273 million.
Three graduate programs — audiology, online business and online MBA — are ranked in the top 10 in the nation, according to U.S. News and World Report.
Since 2007, almost 12 million square feet and $1.7 billion in new and renovated space have been added to campus.

 

aerial view of the campus mall

Our Aspiration

For UT Dallas to build on its successes, it must continually be compared to the finest research universities in the United States. With the encouragement and support from The University of Texas System and the Board of Regents, the University identified seven benchmark institutions:

UT Dallas will use these institutions to compare its progress in research advancement, student retention rates, student-to-faculty ratios, degrees produced, state support received, and tuition and fees generated.

All seven are members of the Association of American Universities (AAU), three are land-grant universities and three award medical doctorates. UT Dallas does not share these attributes but aims to have a research portfolio that would be comparable to the 65 universities that make up the AAU.

The University will understand and emulate the attributes of these benchmark institutions and all members of the AAU. By studying and learning from excellent universities, UT Dallas will continue to improve its quality and worldwide impact.

 

student visiting the campus mall pools