UTEP Launches Online Chicano Studies Program

Last Updated on June 21, 2017 at 12:00 AM

Originally published June 21, 2017

By UC Staff

UTEP Communications

The Chicano Studies Program at The University of Texas at El Paso has recently launched a new online Bachelor of Arts in Chicano Studies option enabling students across the United States and around the globe to have access to one of the oldest and most respected Chicano Studies programs in the nation.

In 1971, UTEP became the first university in Texas to introduce a Chicano Studies program. 

UTEP’s online option will follow a similar curriculum to that of the University’s on-campus Bachelor of Arts in Chicano Studies program with one major difference: online students will be able to attend classes from anywhere in the world they have a computer and Internet access.

“There are large concentrations of ethnic Mexicans residing throughout the country who hunger for knowledge about history and culture, who want to see themselves in the grand narrative of the United States,” said Dennis Bixler-Márquez, Ph.D., director of Chicano Studies. “This program provides them with that space.”

The multi- and interdisciplinary Chicano Studies program is 100 percent online and is ideal for aspiring professionals seeking to work in positions (both in the private and public sector) that require knowledge of the Mexican origin population together with literacy and digital communication skills.

The curriculum emphasizes the dynamics of the U.S.-Mexico border and the Latino presence throughout the nation and provides an opportunity for students to link that knowledge with other disciplines and professional careers. Chicano Studies majors will complete 30 hours of core courses in Chicano literature, cultural diversity, immigration, social justice and more.

UTEP's strategic location on the U.S.-Mexico border will enable students to gain substantial expertise on the historical, cultural and geographic context of the Mexican origin population – the largest ethnic minority group in the U.S.

Chicano Studies majors will engage with students from different backgrounds through online group work and discussion boards. They also will also develop team, organizational and planning skills and become proficient with computer software programs.

Chicano Studies graduates often continue on to law school, public health administration, social work, national security, and master’s and doctoral programs in these areas and more.

The online program is offered through UTEP Connect, the University’s collection of fully online baccalaureate, graduate and certificate programs.

For information about the online Bachelor of Arts in Chicano Studies, visit their website

To learn more about the UTEP Connect suite of programs, visit utepconnect.utep.edu.