Tarleton State University is a public research university and a founding member of The Texas A&M University System, a role it has held since 1917. Established in 1899 on a bequest of $85,000 from businessman and rancher John Tarleton, the institution now serves more than 21,000 students and offers nearly 140 degree programs, from associate's to doctoral level, through colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Business, Education, Health Sciences, Engineering, Nursing and Liberal Arts.
Teaching and research are spread across four Texas locations and online. The flagship campus is in Stephenville, where the university was founded; regional sites operate in Fort Worth, Waco and Bryan at the Texas A&M-RELLIS campus. A dedicated online platform delivers Tarleton programs remotely. The university holds the R2 classification for high research activity, a distinction held by only 4% of American universities.
Its academic strengths lie in agricultural sciences, engineering, health sciences and nursing, education, business and liberal arts, alongside distance education. Tarleton is recognised for its work in rural healthcare education and agricultural programmes. Its mission emphasises educational excellence, discovery, leadership and service, and its athletics programme competes at NCAA Division I level in the Western Athletic Conference.
