Texas A&M University
- Dedicated Oct. 4, 1876 as Texas' first public institute of higher learning.
- The nation's seventh-largest university by enrollment: 44,435 students in fall 2004.
- Consistently in the top 20 in enrollment of National Merit Scholars; about 600 National Merit Scholars during the 2004-05 academic year.
- 5,200-acre main campus, including a 434-acre Research Park, is among the largest in the nation.
- Branch campuses in Galveston and the Persian Gulf state of Qatar; university centers in Mexico City and Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy.
- Home to the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, open since 1997.
- One of only 62 invited members of the Association of American Universities, a highly selective organization that promotes high standards for teaching, research and scholarship at the undergraduate, graduate and professional levels.
- With more than 150 members, Texas A&M’s Kappa of Texas Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa is among the largest chapters of the nation’s oldest and largest academic honor societies.
- A state leader in student retention & graduation rates: More than 90% of fall 2003 freshmen returned for their sophomore year; 76% of fall 1998 freshmen graduated within six years; 73% fall 2000 transfer students graduated within four years.
- More than three-quarters of students receive financial aid.
- In FY 2004, scholarships, grants, awards and waivers accounted for almost $131 million of the more than $329 million in total financial aid.
- Among only a select few academic institutions in the nation to hold a triple designation as a Land-Grant, Sea-Grant and Space-Grant university.
- As of June 2003, Texas A&M’s approximately $3.8 billion endowment ranked third among U.S. public universities and ninth overall.
