Commuter school to research powerhouse

Remember when the University of Texas at Arlington was informally known as a commuter school?

Those days are behind the second-largest member of the UT System with its shiny designation as an R1 (“highest research activity”) university by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, new top-100 ranking of 20 graduate programs by U.S. News & World Report and $85 million in research expenditures.

The university has been aggressively changing its brand, all with the goal to achieve the coveted top-tier status. The school will add a brand-new engineering building to its already stellar assets. Highly distinguished faculty have been recruited with research being the focus.

“UTA is now a research powerhouse and the consistently high number of doctoral degrees granted over a sustained period of time reflects this excellence,” UTA President Vistasp Karbhari said in a news release. “We are firmly on the road to becoming the school of choice for students who want to carry out impactful research that leads them to excellent positions in academia, public service or the private sector.”

The top tier is within reach.

This story was originally published October 3, 2016 at 6:03 PM with the headline "Commuter school to research powerhouse."