Building Talent, Attracting Industry at UTRGV

Dr. Can Saygin connects industry-driven education with better local careers and stronger Texas–Mexico collaboration.

PHARR, Texas — For Dr. Can Saygin, executive vice president for academic affairs and Dean of the Graduate College at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, South Texas’ manufacturing future depends on advancing two goals together: preparing residents for better jobs and attracting the industries that will create those opportunities. Education, he argues, must help shape the region’s industrial growth while responding to employers’ needs.

In an interview with Pro Texas Industry at the Pharr EDC Roundtable Live on October 22, Saygin described manufacturing as both an economic priority and a personal interest rooted in his background in manufacturing systems and automation.

“We need to have academic programs that actually provide students with the skills that the industry needs,” Saygin said.

That alignment is particularly important for a region where, he said, students have historically left to pursue opportunities elsewhere. Preparing graduates for work is only one part of the challenge; South Texas also needs the employers and careers that give those graduates a reason to stay.

Saygin said academic programs should also help attract additional industry. “So it’s actually a two-way street,” he said.

Saygin said economic development corporations are helping strengthen that connection by bringing UTRGV into conversations with companies considering the region. Hearing directly from employers allows the university to identify needed skills and consider changes to its curriculum before students enter the workforce.

He also pointed to plans to expand academic offerings in Brownsville, including making full mechanical and civil engineering programs available there. Such efforts reflect his emphasis on connecting educational capacity with the needs of communities and industry.

For Saygin, however, the university is one participant in a much broader effort. Reliable energy, water, transportation and other infrastructure must develop alongside the workforce if the region is to capture more industrial investment.

“We have to work with the cities, EDCs, with Mexico, with the companies across the border,” he said.

That binational perspective is central to his outlook. South Texas’ ports, international bridges and proximity to Mexico create opportunities to connect complementary strengths across the border. Realizing that potential, he said, requires a more collaborative approach to infrastructure and industrial development.

Saygin’s vision places education at the center of South Texas’ long-term competitiveness. By connecting academic programs, employer investment and Texas–Mexico partnerships, the region can build the capacity to support more advanced manufacturing while helping local talent find its future closer to home.