By Heriberto Perez–Zuñiga

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, TEXAS – NOV. 26, 2025 – Nearly 10 years ago, the lights flickered on inside a brand-new building in Edinburg, and empty classrooms soon filled with the hum of ambition as future physicians prepared to change the story of healthcare in the Rio Grande Valley.

It was the beginning of something the region had never seen before – a medical school built by and for the Valley.

Today, nearly a decade later, that vision continues to grow.

According to the latest Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Graduation Questionnaire (GQ), the UTRGV School of Medicine earned high marks across nearly every measure of student satisfaction, including the quality of medical education, mentorship support and readiness for residency.

The questionnaire is a confidential, web-based survey for graduating medical students in the United States that assesses their entire medical school experience, including clinical training, residency readiness and student services.

Administered annually to graduating medical students across the country among all 155 medical schools, the AAMC GQ is one of the most important tools available for evaluating how effectively medical schools prepare their students for residency and professional practice.

For Dr. Everardo Cobos, interim dean of the UTRGV School of Medicine and chair of Medicine and Oncology, the results represent a decade of dedication, perseverance and gratitude.

"When I see these results, I think of every student, faculty member and community partner who believed in this mission from day one," Cobos said.

"We are grateful, not only for the success our students have achieved, but for the opportunity to serve and educate right here in the Valley,” he said. “This is what academic medicine can do when it takes root in the community it serves."

A DECADE OF IMPACT

Since welcoming its first class in 2016, the UTRGV School of Medicine has graduated nearly 300 physicians, many of whom now serve in clinics, hospitals and residency programs throughout Texas and beyond.

The 2025 GQ results show that UTRGV met or exceeded national benchmarks in 11 of 14 basic science areas, all seven clerkship measures, and all nine measures of residency preparedness.

Satisfaction with the medical education received at the UTRGV School of Medicine was 84% among respondents in the Class of 2025, with more than 90% agreeing that the school had done an excellent job fostering their development as physicians.

Behind those numbers are the stories of 45 students whose lives and futures have been shaped by the school's mission.

San Carlos native and Class of 2025 graduate Dr. Hector Trejo says earning a spot in an internal medicine residency program here in the Valley is the start of something meaningful.

"I will always credit the UTRGV School of Medicine, its faculty, staff and my classmates, for shaping me into the best version of myself," he said. "Their mentorship and shared dedication to medicine have been instrumental in my growth."

Dr. Carlos Cisneros, a Brownsville native and fellow Class of 2025 graduate, says his journey was filled with the instruction and opportunities that helped him match into a pathology residency at the University of Colorado Denver.  

"UTRGV provided me with exceptional learning experiences with faculty during my pre-clerkship years and clinical rotations here at home," he said. "The support and encouragement the faculty provided me has truly been integral in discovering what specialty matched my passion."

For the Class of 2025, the road to medicine began amid uncertainty and change. Yet, they graduated as confident, compassionate physicians, many of whom chose to stay and serve the same South Texas communities that shaped their dreams.

(UTRGV Photo by Heriberto Perez-Zuniga)

BEHIND THE NUMBERS

Faculty and leadership across the UTRGV School of Medicine say these outcomes reflect years of effort to create a learning environment built on compassion, collaboration and community engagement.

Cobos credits the results to the school's culture of gratitude, one that values mentorship as much as medical excellence.

"Our students remind us daily why this work matters, and that gratitude fuels our commitment to keep improving every day," he said.

The school's recent reaffirmation of full accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) reinforces its commitment to excellence.

As the UTRGV School of Medicine celebrates another successful class and looks toward its next decade, the vision that launched the school remains unchanged: gratitude for the people, the place and the purpose that made it possible.