NEWS
Texas Tech University opens in Costa Rica its first International Campus
Investment exceeds USD $ 10 million for the first phase of the international campus of TTU-CR, which has classrooms, laboratories, library, media center, administrative offices, amphitheater and other integrated student services in the community of residences, offices and shops existing in Avenida Escazú.
San José, Costa Rica. May 10th, 2018. With the goal of providing the country, and the region, with the necessary professionals to make a quantitative leap in business, Texas Tech University (TTU) inaugurated today in San José, its first international campus.
The university, one of the oldest and most prestigious in the state of Texas, has entered a frank process of international growth and expansion, within which the opening of the Texas Tech University Costa Rica campus (TTU-CR) is a key step for this purpose.
During the opening event, the Vice President of the Republic, Epsy Campbell, mentioned: "the government is pleased to accompany Texas Tech University on such an important day. This is an official welcome to Costa Rica and we wish you great success. Education is an important part of our history and that is why this government places it as the central axis of the administration. In the context of the celebration of the bicentennial, it is an honor that Texas Tech has chosen Costa Rica to set up this campus."
"We are very pleased to open the first international campus of Texas Tech University. This process has involved the diligence, hard work and resources of many dedicated people in Costa Rica and Lubbock, who recognized the opportunity to improve the educational offer of students in both countries. This is a historic day for Texas Tech University as we advance the global reputation of Texas Tech and provide an opportunity for students in Costa Rica to be part of the Texas Tech family," said Lawrence Schovanec, President of Texas Tech University.
Duayner Salas, Minister of Foreign Trade in office, commented: "We are pleased that Costa Rica becomes the first international campus of Texas Tech. The establishment of this center of studies comes to complement the offer and increase our capabilities in education. We hope it also contributes to address some of the important challenges that, as a country, we are facing in issues such as the generation of skills in areas of high labor demand. We extend our congratulations to Texas Tech and our sincere wishes for many and great successes in their management. "
From its conceptualization, with the support, among other institutions, of the Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency( CINDE) TTU-CR set itself the goal of becoming a catalyst for progress, development and innovation, which will lead to Costa Rica and the region towards a future of leadership thanks to the possibilities of acquiring skills, abilities and knowledge of the 21st century.
Jorge Sequeira, Managing Director of CINDE, said: "We are very pleased that one of the most prestigious universities in the United States has chosen the country to set up its campus and prepare the professionals of the future from here. Even during its installation process, CINDE accompanied TTU in the definition of careers to be taught in the country. TTU has expressed its interest in working together with the local academy, which motivates us to take advantage of the presence and knowledge of its team of professors to develop contents that will strengthen our labor market and the preparation of Costa Rican human talent. "
The university will begin lessons in August offering five key undergraduate degrees: B.S. Electrical Engineering, B.S Industrial Engineering, B.S Computer Science, B.S Mathematics and B.S Restaurant, Hotel, and Institution Management.
"Costa Rica continues its journey towards a more developed country, where we offer more and better opportunities to our young people. Where we develop our human capital to the maximum. Texas Tech Costa Rica will be defining a new education model. A world-class education that will open the minds of our young people to innovation, to advance through merit, and to achieve goals that were thought unattainable. This is our challenge. This is the promise of TTU, "said John Keith, executive president of Banco Promerica.
Precisely, the reality today, that a university in the United States - and one as prestigious as TTU - has decided to establish a satellite campus in the country, is thanks to the initiative of Grupo Promerica, under its EDULINK educational arm, who has the vision that accessible and high-quality education is the catalytic factor to face the challenges that the world presents.
The campus, located in Avenida Escazú, is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges which is the United States accreditation entity for higher education institutions located in 11 states of the United States, with presence in Latin America and other locations worldwide.
An important advantage of TTU-CR is that its students can participate in exchanges, international cooperation programs, internships, research programs, as well as studying part of their studies abroad.
Similarly, the university has a robust Career Services program which helps students achieve placement in the labor market. In this sense, statistics indicate that 98% of their students achieve a job, six months after graduation.
With an initial investment that exceeds USD $ 10 million, this first phase of the satellite campus of TTU-CR has classrooms, laboratories, library, media center, administrative offices, amphitheater and other student services integrated into the community of residences, offices and existing businesses in Avenida Escazú.
The local campus has capacity for about 1,300 students and will have a teaching faculty composed of a combination of professors, mostly from Lubbock, Texas, although there will also be nationals. In the beginning, 50 students will be accepted per degree and for those interested to have better chances of passing the entrance exams, the same university offers a series of tools, advice and help.
For more press information
Pablo Bulgarelli, Aseprensa/ 2278-2067/ 8938-0730/ pbulgarelli@aseprensa.com
Carlos Morales, CINDE/ cmorales@cinde.org
