Address: 401 Joe Routt Blvd, 77843 College Station, Texas, United States
Engineering, Agriculture, Veterinary Medicine
Founded in 1876, Texas A&M is a public land-grant research university and the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. It is one of the largest universities in the US by student enrollment, with strong programs in engineering, agriculture, veterinary medicine, and business.
Texas A&M University opened in 1876 as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, the first public institution of higher education in the state. It was established under the Morrill Act, in a rural location near Bryan, which became College Station. For its first decades it was an all-male military college, and women were admitted in limited numbers in the 1960s and fully by the early 1970s. Today it has about 74,500 students and 10,000 staff, and it is one of the largest universities in the country.
The Corps of Cadets, founded with the college, is the largest uniformed student body outside the military academies and has produced many officers. Traditions define the culture. Students are called Aggies, wear a ring after their third year, attend Silver Taps to honour deceased students, join Fish Camp as freshmen, and stand during football games as the Twelfth Man. The Aggie Muster, held every April, remembers former students around the world.
The university is a leader in engineering, agriculture and life sciences, veterinary medicine, geosciences, architecture and business. The College of Engineering is among the largest in the country, and the university runs an engineering experiment station and a transportation institute. Texas A&M is designated as a land-grant, sea-grant and space-grant institution. The George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, dedicated to the forty-first president, is located on the west campus.
The Texas A&M University at Galveston campus focuses on maritime and ocean studies, and a branch in Doha, Qatar, offers engineering programmes. The Aggies play football at Kyle Field, a stadium that holds more than 100,000 people. Admission is by application, with automatic admission for top graduates of Texas high schools. Tuition is higher for non-residents and international students. Check the current tariff. Teaching is in English.
College Station is a university town in a hot and humid region, about 150 kilometres from Houston and Austin, and a car or the university bus system is the usual way to move.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, Agriculture, AI and Machine Learning, Engineering, Geotechnics, Life Sciences
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Flagship of TAMU System. A senior military college with a large Corps of Cadets. Strong ties with energy sector, agriculture, NASA, and government agencies. Member of Association of American Universities.
Research:
A major research university with strengths in engineering (petroleum, nuclear, aerospace, agricultural), agriculture and life sciences, veterinary medicine, oceanography, and business. Very high research expenditure.
Famous Alumnis:
Rick Perry, Johnny Manziel, Lyle Lovett, Henry Cisneros, George P. Bush, Tyrus Thomas
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
10200
Current students***:
74500
Foreign students***:
5%
Cumulative former students***:
505000
Pros
Very large university with strong school spirit (Aggie traditions), top-ranked engineering and agricultural programs, extensive research facilities, large and active alumni network.
Cons
Extremely large student population, conservative campus culture can be a factor for some, located in a smaller university town (College Station).
Best For
Students seeking a large, traditional land-grant university experience with strong programs in engineering, agriculture, or veterinary medicine, often valuing strong school spirit, traditions, and a vast alumni network.
Pennsylvania State University offers a comparable education in agriculture, geotechnics and AI and machine learning: it covers materials and data analytics as well, and is slightly larger, at about 90,500 students against roughly 74,500 here.
Among national alternatives, Oklahoma State University stands out for its focus on aerospace, agriculture and life sciences, and it does not run the mba programmes found here and covers software engineering as well.
Another national school that puts geotechnics, life sciences and AI and machine learning at the centre is University of Texas at Austin, and it is slightly smaller, at about 52,400 students against roughly 74,500 here, and is also a public institution.
University of Missouri-Columbia offers a comparable education in agriculture, life sciences and AI and machine learning: it covers data analytics and software engineering as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 31,000 students against roughly 74,500 here.
Texas Tech University follows much the same lines as this university, with agriculture, life sciences and AI and machine learning as common ground, and it is smaller, enrolling about 40,000 students against roughly 74,500 here, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
For a study option in Ireland with a comparable spread of agriculture, life sciences and engineering, University College Dublin is the reference point: it runs the same bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba programmes, and covers food science and bioengineering as well.
University of Lisbon in Portugal shares the agriculture, life sciences and engineering orientation of this institution, and it runs the same bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba programmes, and covers finance and civil engineering as well.
Beyond national borders, University of Nottingham stands out as a comparable school for agriculture, life sciences and AI and machine learning; it covers chemistry and physics as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 46,500 students against roughly 74,500 here.
University of Melbourne, based in Australia, is built around agriculture, life sciences and AI and machine learning much like this institution, and it is also a public institution and also offers graduate certificate and graduate diploma programmes.
In China, South China Agricultural University teaches much the same core subjects, agriculture, life sciences and engineering, and it does not run the mba programmes found here and covers food science and microbiology and genetics as well.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is Texas A&M University?
In College Station, Texas, about 150 kilometres from Houston and Austin.
When did it open?
In 1876, as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas.
What is special about its founding?
It was the first public institution of higher education in Texas.
How large is it?
About 74,500 students and 10,000 staff.
What is the Corps of Cadets?
The largest uniformed student body outside the military academies.
What are Aggie traditions?
Among others, the Aggie Ring, Silver Taps, Fish Camp and standing during football games as the Twelfth Man.
What is the Aggie Muster?
A ceremony held every April to remember former students around the world.
What does the Galveston campus focus on?
Maritime and ocean studies.
Where is the George Bush Presidential Library?
On the west campus, in College Station.
What does it cost?
Tuition is higher for non-residents and international students. Check the current tariff.
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
Innovation.world is not affiliated with this school/university. We recommend to contact them directly on their website for any special request.
To complete or correct any information here or share your opinion, please comment below or > send us a direct message <.
