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Posted: 1/28/22

TAMIU Ranked Third in Nation for Economic Mobility

 

Dr. Pablo Arenaz
Dr. Pablo Arenaz, TAMIU President  

Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) has been ranked third in the nation among those higher education institutions leading the charge in empowering graduates’ long-term economic success.

An analysis published this week by Third Way, a public policy think tank, looked at the degree of economic mobility the nation’s higher education institutions provide to low-and moderate-income students.

Third Way used a new rating system, the Economic Mobility Index (EMI) which focuses on the premise that post-secondary education acts as a catalyst to increase economic mobility.  Looking at EMI, Third Way identified the schools that succeed best.

TAMIU was the highest-ranked Texas school in the analysis and one of only two Texas institutions included in the Top Ten.  TAMIU was third, while the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley was fourth.

TAMIU president Dr. Pablo Arenaz said the ranking is a ringing endorsement of the University’s mission and commitment to students.

“We are truly gratified that our mission and commitment are being recognized nationally. For over 50 years, TAMIU’s mission has been focused on making higher education accessible, affordable, and excellent.  This ranking affirms that we are doing just that,” Dr. Arenaz said.

The report also notes that of the Top Ten campuses identified, these campuses enrolled over six times as many Pell Grant recipients, 95,619, in a year.  At TAMIU, the number of Pell Grant recipients is 4,511, or 64.5% of the student population.

All the Top Ten institutions are also Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), a designation that indicates at least a quarter of the student population is Hispanic.   

The report places TAMIU’s EMI at 60.7%, the third-highest behind California State University-Los Angeles (66.7%) and California State University-Dominguez Hills (63.3%).

The report notes that the ranked universities benefit from “generous state funding that allows four-year colleges in these states to be some of the most affordable options.”  It also concludes that students graduating from these ranked universities are more likely to recoup their educational costs in two years or less.

To read the report, visit https://www.thirdway.org/report/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new-rating-higher-ed-by-economic-mobility

TAMIU’s Spring Semester 2022 began this week.

For additional information, contact the University’s Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services by email at prmis@tamiu.edu, call 956.326.2180 or click on tamiu.edu.  University news and information is also available on its social channels on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.