Graduate and Professional School Research Projects
The Graduate and Professional School works with partners across Texas A&M as well as other research institutions and federal agencies to make graduate and professional education stronger, improve outcomes and increase diversity in advanced degree programs and the professoriate.
Research Partnerships that Strengthen Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University’s commitment to research and development motivates graduate and professional studies across the various disciplines. The Graduate and Professional School supplements the overall University initiative by devising, soliciting funding for, and implementing projects focused on the cultivation of outstanding future faculty while conducting pathbreaking graduate research.
Through a combination of external and internal sources, grants enable the Graduate and Professional School to create research models for important initiatives such as increasing underrepresented demographics in academia.
$2,816,700
NSF Awards 1723255, 1723260, 1723165, and 1723253
$246,662
NIH Award T32GM135748
$1,330,881
NIH Award 5T32GM13574802
Enhancing Diversity In Higher Education and the Professoriate
When it comes to higher education and the professoriate, the Graduate and Professional School has enhanced our diversity and inclusion efforts. Although Texas A&M stands out nationally for awarding advanced degrees to underrepresented minority (URM) students, our current rates of retention and graduation do not satisfy us. We are determined to do better.
Overall | URM Students | |
Enrollment | 16,560 | 2,935 |
STEM Enrollment | 7,211 | 755 |
Degrees Granted | 5,014 | 819 |
STEM Degrees Granted | 2,006 | 174 |
Average time to Degree, 2019-2020
Degree | Overall | URM | STEM |
Doctoral | 6.0 years | 6.6 years | 5.9 years |
Masters | 2.0 years | 1.9 years | 2.3 years |

We are committed to making the institutional changes necessary to create a more supportive, inclusive environment and improve the student experience. This is why we have sharpened our focus on programming that improves recruitment, retention, and professional training for students from URS populations.
Grant-Funded Research and Training Models
Texas A&M’s rare triple designation as a land-, sea- and space-grant institution reflects the broad scope of its research, which includes ongoing projects funded by prominent and diverse agencies, such as the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Security Agency.
TAMUS – E&S AGEP
The Texas A&M University System – Energy & Sustainability Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (TAMUS – E&S AGEP) was a collaboration between five Ph.D. granting institutions aimed at broadening the pathways to the doctorate and professoriate for underrepresented minority (URM) populations in STEM disciplines. It ran from from September 15, 2013 - August 31, 2019, and was succeeded by AGEP II: TxARM.
TxARM AGEP
Texas A&M University Alliance Research Model (TxARM) is an NSF-funded alliance between four Texas A&M System institutions to advance knowledge about models to improve pathways to the professoriate and success of historically underrepresented minority (URM) graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and faculty in specific STEM disciplines and/or STEM education research fields.
CAMPS OnRamp II
The Collaboration for Advancing Minority Participation in Security (CAMPS) brings together five public universities in the Texas A&M University System in an Educational Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the National Security Agency’s (NSA) OnRamp II program. OnRamp II promotes the technical health and diversity of students in STEM disciplines and creates a diverse pipeline of future employees in the NSA.
IMSD at TAMU
IMSD at Texas A&M University (TAMU): Initiative for Maximizing Student Development in Biomedical Sciences aims to enhance recruitment and retention of underrepresented populations in biomedical science graduate programs at Texas A&M by-seeking students who have the skills to transition successfully into biomedical research careers.
CGS PROJECTS
Texas A&M participates in the CGS Projects Career Pathways for Program Improvement project. The Council of Graduate Schools, a national nonprofit research organization, leads the project with support from the National Science Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The goal of the project is to better understand the diverse paths our alumni take so that we can improve program and student support.