The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s School of Medicine is one step closer to full accreditation. 

This week, the university was notified that the Liaison Committee on Medical Education granted the College of Medicine provisional accreditation status, meaning they’re on the path to becoming a fully accredited program within the next two years. 

UTRGV School of Medicine Professor Dr. Leonel Vela described the news as a dream come true for the Rio Grande Valley region. 

“You know this is a very important step in achieving full accreditation,” Vela said. “We look forward to that. Full accreditation provides us an opportunity in the future to expand our class sizes— more students from the Valley to study and achieve their dreams of becoming physicians.” 

The step of provisional accreditation prepares the school for full accreditation, which requires a three-day visit from a team of medical educators and practitioners.