Best Medical Schools in Texas

Baylor College of Medicine - Houston

The Baylor College of Medicine is ranked by U.S. News among the top 10 medical schools in the U.S. for primary care, and the college also wins high marks for cost—it is the least expensive private medical school in the country. The College of Medicine's strength draws from its location in the Texas Medical Center in Houston, the world's largest medical complex. Baylor receives more National Institutes of Health (NIH) research dollars than any other medical school in Texas. Texas Children's Hospital, the largest pediatric hospital in the U.S., is staffed entirely by Baylor College of Medicine faculty.

Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine - College Station

The Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine trains students through a system spread across five Texas A&M campuses. All students study on the Bryan-College Station main campus their first year, and they then go on to complete their training at one of five campuses: Bryan-College Station, Dallas, Houston, Round Rock, or Temple.

The College of Medicine enrolls 125 students each year, and 90% of those students come from Texas, and all students must have earned the majority of their undergraduate credits at a fully accredited college in the U.S. or Canada. With tuition under $20,000 for Texas residents, the M.D. program is less expensive than most.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center - El Paso

The Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, part of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, has the distinction of being the first four-year medical school located along the U.S.-Mexico border. Because of its special mission and El Paso location, all PLFSOM students must learn medical Spanish language skills as part of their training. No other school in the country has this requirement.

A PSFSOM education emphasizes clinical training starting in the first year, and this experiential approach motivates classroom and laboratory learning. The school takes pride in its Center for Advanced Teaching and Assessment in Clinical Simulation, a state-of-the art training facility.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center - Lubbock

The School of Medicine at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. The school opened to address the shortage of doctors in West Texas, and the school still fulfills that mission today. The school takes pride in bringing medical services to the underserved in both its local region and across the globe.

The school takes an integrated and interdisciplinary approach to learning, and every stage of the four-year program has research and clinical components. The medical campus sits northwest of the Texas Tech University main campus, so students have easy access to all the social, cultural, and athletic events of a large Division I research university.

University of North Texas Health Science Center - Fort Worth

While the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth has been around for decades, the institution has only recently launched a School of Medicine in collaboration with Texas Christian University. The school was established in 2018, and the inaugural class of 60 students began their medical journeys in 2019.

Each student in the college has 12 Physician Development Coaches to help guide their medical education, and the college takes pride in its diverse, collaborative, and community-based approach to learning.

University of Texas - Austin

Another brand new medical school in Texas, the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas of Austin first opened its doors to students in 2016. The medical campus sits on the southeastern edge of the UT Austin main campus. Dell Med has partnered with Ascension Seton, so medical students have ready access to clinical experiences at well-established medical facilities.

University of Texas Medical Branch - Galveston

The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) School of Medicine was established in 1891, and the campus has a pleasing mix of historic and modern buildings just blocks from the Gulf of Mexico. The entire UTMB system includes schools of medicine, nursing, health professions, and graduate biomedical sciences. A total of 900 faculty members serve over 3,200 students. The School of Medicine has trained one out of every six physicians in Texas.

University of Texas Health Science Center - Houston

Like Baylor University's medical school, the University of Texas Health Science Center is part of the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical campus in the world. UTHealth has six schools: dentistry, biomedical sciences, nursing, biomedical informatics, public health, the Anderson Cancer Center, and the John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Medical School.

The McGovern Medical School is the seventh largest in the country. The school enrolls 240 medical students a year, and the school's Houston location gives students ready access to a wide range of inpatient and outpatient medical facilities.

University of Texas School of Medicine - San Antonio

The University of Texas Long School of Medicine at San Antonio has its home in the University of Texas Science Center southwest of downtown. The Long School of Medicine takes pride in being the largest trainer of physicians in southern Texas with an annual enrollment of roughly 900 medical students and 800 residents. Few locations in the country provide medical students with so many opportunities to work with a diverse population at such a wide range of centers including the Mays Cancer Center, Center for Emergency Medicine, Research Imaging Institute, and Center for Healthy Aging.

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley - Edinburg

Another young medical school, the University of Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine first opened its doors to a class of 50 students in 2016. The school is still in the process of obtaining full accreditation.

The School of Medicine has 11 departments ranging from human genetics to family medicine, and the campus is also home to the Institute for Neurosciences and the South Texas Diabetes & Obesity Institute. Medical students gain clinical training at several area facilities including Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, Knapp Medical Center, McAllen Medical Center, and Valley Baptist Medical Center.

University of Texas Southwestern Medical School - Dallas

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center is home to three academic units: the UT School of Health Professions, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and the UT Southwestern Medical School. The medical school is highly selective with an acceptance rate hovering around 5% and typical MCAT scores in the top 10% of all test-takers.

The medical school has made the top 10 in the U.S. News ranking for primary care, and the school offers a range of combined degree programs such as M.D./Ph.D., M.D./M.B.A. and M.D./M.P.H. Students have plenty of clinical and residency options at the school's four affiliated hospitals.