The University of North Texas System (UNT System or UNTS) includes the University of North Texas in Denton (UNT), the University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) in Fort Worth and the University of North Texas at Dallas (UNTD). The UNT System Administration is based in Downtown Dallas. The UNT System also provides high-quality, innovative, and affordable legal education in downtown Dallas at the University of North Texas at Dallas College of Law.
The three independent universities of the UNT System have combined enrollment of just over 42,000 students across five major teaching locations, including each main campus, as well as Frisco and Downtown Dallas. The UNT System has a $1 billion annual consolidated budget, employs roughly 10,000 people at its various locations within the robust North Texas Region and boosts the Texas economy by nearly $5.2 billion each year.
UNT System component institutions, responding to demand in the region and the state, are among Texas’s fastest growing institutions of higher education. In Fall 2015, 42,025 students enrolled at UNT System institutions – a 27 percent increase over Fall 2005. By 2020, enrollment at UNT System institutions is projected to increase to more than 48,000 students. Over the past decade, the number of degrees awarded each year has increased 49 percent to 9243 in 2015.
OUR UNIVERSITIES
Established in 1890, University of North Texas (UNT), is one of the nation's largest universities with enrollment exceeding 37,000. UNT offers 100 bachelor's, 83 master's and 37 doctoral degree programs. Led by President Neal J. Smatresk, UNT is ranked among the 115 top-tier research universities — 81 of which are public universities — in the latest Carnegie Classification list. The university has been named one of America’s 100 Best College Buys for 20 consecutive years, a ranking based on having a high-achieving freshman class and affordable tuition. The Princeton Review continually names UNT as a Best in the West school and Forbes has listed UNT as an America's Top College for eight consecutive years. UNT has 15 programs ranked in the Top 100 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.
UNT had a 3% jump in enrollment in fall 2015, with increases across the board — from freshmen to graduate student enrollment. Among students in fall 2015 were 30 National Merit Finalists, including 15 new finalists in the freshman class. As it grows, UNT is keeping pace with changing state demographics. UNT’s Hispanic student population is now 21% − a 54% increase from five years ago. And UNT is a top transfer institution with a nearly 6% increase in first-time transfer students in the last five years
With an all-time high enrollment of 2362, University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNT Health Science Center or UNTHSC) is one of the nation’s premier graduate academic medical centers and is composed of five schools that specialize in patient-centered education, research and health care: the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, the School of Public Health, the School of Health Professions and the UNT System College of Pharmacy. In 2015, UNTHSC announced a unique public/private partnership with TCU to create a new MD school in Fort Worth. The school, planning to accept its first class in 2018, will be among the leading institutions in the nation in providing a team-oriented educational approach that benefits patients and shapes the future practice and business of medicine.
UNTHSC’s dedication to primary care has received national recognition for the 15th consecutive year in U.S. News & World Report’s annual ranking of medical schools. Among the magazine’s ranked programs, UNTHSC’s Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (TCOM) is first in Texas and second nationally in the percentage of graduates entering primary care fields. Led by President Michael Williams, a UNTHSC alum and former UNT System Regent, the university invests $39.2 million in annual research expenditures – a figure that has nearly doubled since 2006..
University of North Texas at Dallas (UNT Dallas) was established in 2010 and received accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOS) in 2013. Led by President Bob Mong, the university has a diverse student population (41% Hispanic, 35% African-American, and 17% white) including first time freshmen, transfer students, veterans and graduate students. As the only public, doctoral granting comprehensive university in the City of Dallas – the hub of the State’s most densely populated region – UNTD is critical to achieving the State’s 60X30 Texas Plan. The University offers bachelors, masters and a juris doctor degree. Enrollment has increased since its inception and is projected at 5000 students by 2021. Enrollment for Fall 2015 was 2488 and includes the UNT Dallas College of Law. Applications for the College of Law’s third class are exceeding projections – a positive response to its dedication to provide affordable access to education with an annual tuition that is significantly lower than all other law schools, public or private, in Texas.
Construction for a residence hall and planning for a student learning and success center is underway. The residence hall is anticipated to open July 2017 and ground breaking for the student learning and success center is scheduled for January 2017 with completion estimated during fiscal year 2018. Construction continues on the DART light rail station adjacent to campus which will link the university with direct access to the downtown corridor and beyond. The project is scheduled for completion in October 2016. These additional facilities and improvements to facilities will provide essential infrastructure needed to support the strategic initiative of 5,000 students at UNT Dallas by 2021.
OUR MISSION AND VISION
The UNT System is committed to helping people and communities reach their full potential.
As the only public Texas university system exclusively dedicated to serving the North Texas Region, the UNT System’s sphere of influence is significant and comes with responsibility. And as the System’s student population, educational offerings, research contributions and physical campuses continue to grow, it’s more important than ever for all of our institutions to align from a values standpoint.
At the UNT System, we strive to embed our core values – Be Collaborative. Be Trustworthy. Be Respectful. Be Exceptional. Be Accountable – into our System-wide culture, from UNTS administration headquartered in Downtown Dallas to faculty and students at UNTS campuses and major teaching centers in Denton, Fort Worth, Dallas and Frisco.
ROLE OF UNT SYSTEM ADMINISTRATION
The UNT System Administration, founded in 1999, provides governance and service to UNT System component institutions in the areas of law, finance, audit, academic affairs and student success, facilities and construction, and governmental relations. Chancellor Lee Jackson has led the UNT System since 2002, and is supported by five Vice Chancellors and a Chief Internal Auditor.
Like its counterpart central administrative offices across Texas, the UNT System:
In addition to providing these core services, the UNT System Administration has worked for the past several years, under the direction of the UNTS Board of Regents, to centralize additional key administrative services in order to increase efficiency and facilitate system-wide cost savings. Centralization of services including Information Technology (IT), Human Resources (HR) and many business and financial services provides cost and operational efficiency opportunities, while also allowing the UNT System component institutions to concentrate on carrying out their respective missions.