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Academic Excellence Through Education, Research & Service
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Graduate Degree Programs
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Public University in the U.S. U.S. News & World Report, 2024
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Among U.S. universities in research financed by the National Science Foundation (NSF)
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Latest News
A Night at the Telescope
he University of Texas at Austin offers unmatched opportunities for undergraduates to conduct research firsthand — for some, as soon as their freshman year. Situated within the College of Natural Sciences, the Harlan J. Smith Scholars program invites astronomy students to observe and take data on a 107-inch telescope at McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains of West Texas. Karl Gebhardt, chair of the Department of Astronomy, started the program a year ago, and he continues to bring students to the observatory each semester.
Scientists Successfully Harvest Chickpeas From ‘Moon Dirt’
As the U.S. plans to return to the moon with the upcoming Artemis II mission, a question endures: What will future lunar explorers eat? According to new research from The University of Texas at Austin, the answer might be chickpeas. Scientists have successfully grown and harvested chickpeas using simulated “moon dirt,” the first instance of this crop produced in this medium. The research, which was conducted in collaboration with Texas A&M University, is described in a paper published in the journal Scientific Reports.
And Just Like That, It’s 30 Years Later. Did We Follow the Campus Master Plan?
In the shelves behind my desk sit nearly 100 editions of UT’s alumni magazine, The Alcalde. These were the issues we published while I was editor during the 1990s and 2000s, and, as I’m still writing about UT, I like to keep them handy. Recently I was passing the collection and noticed one that had made its way to the top of the stack. When I read the boldface question we had printed on the cover in 1996, I was dumbstruck: “What will UT look like in 2026?” When we published that issue, 2026 was unimaginably futuristic. Now, it was mere days away!
Spanish Castle Magic
They are part and parcel of any description of the style of our campus: Spanish tile roofs. “Red tile roofs are a positive identifier of the UT building character,” the Campus Master Plan book stated in 1999. “It is one of three major building elements (the other two being limestone and golden bricks) that is crucial to the historic environment.” It was simply a happy accident that the school colors of The University of Texas at Austin wound up being the dominant colors of its core campus, orange and white.
Longhorns Bring Their Expertise to SXSW 2026
Soon, Austin will be chock-full of thought leaders, musicians, filmmakers and attendees from around the world for the 2026 South by Southwest (SXSW) conferences and festivals. This year, faculty, staff and students will showcase their expertise through panel discussions, roundtables, short films and more. If you’re participating in the festivities, be sure to check out these expert Longhorns at SXSW and SXSW EDU.
UT Embarks on a New Campus Master Planning Effort To Shape Its Future
or the first time in more than a decade, The University of Texas at Austin is launching a new campus master planning initiative designed to guide its growth and enhance the campus experience. The Campus Master Plan will provide a framework for land use and development and be a tool to inform continuous investment in UT Austin’s infrastructure, including recommendations for renovations and the reuse of existing buildings to serve its mission.