UT Regents Approve New Degree

AUSTIN – The University of Texas System Board of Regents today (Feb. 17) approved a Doctoral of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree program for UT El Paso.

The proposed program still must gain approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board before it can be implemented.

The new program would focus on border health issues in South Texas. It would be designed to increase the number of trained primary care providers and to prepare bilingual health care providers to serve Hispanic populations throughout the State of Texas.

The DNP program is anticipated to contribute to the State’s Closing the Gaps initiative by increasing the number of Hispanic doctoral graduates.

About the University of Texas System

The University of Texas System is one of the nation’s largest higher education systems, with nine academic campuses and six health institutions. The UT System has an annual operating budget of $12.8 billion (FY 2011) including $3 billion in sponsored programs funded by federal, state, local and private sources. Preliminary student enrollment exceeded 202,000 in the 2009 academic year. The UT System confers more than one-third of the state's undergraduate degrees and educates nearly three-fourths of the state's healthcare professionals annually. With more than 84,000 employees, the UT System is one of the largest employers in the state.