History and Mission
The Publishing Process
Our Partners
Journals

The University of Texas Press is a book publisher—a focal point where the life experiences, insights, and specialized knowledge of writers converge to be disseminated in print.

By launching a scholarly press in 1950, the University of Texas made several important statements: books matter; books educate; and publishing good books is a public responsibility and a valuable component of the state's system of higher education.

In the years since, the Press has become a publisher of international scope, issuing works in a wide range of fields. Our books present the results of original research conducted all across the United States and Latin America and in centers of learning throughout the world. These scholarly books contain important theories and discoveries and help to preserve the cultural heritage of the Americas.

As part of its mission to serve the people of Texas, the Press also produces books of general interest for a wider audience, covering, in particular, the history, culture, arts, and natural history of the state. To these, the Press has recently added accounts of the contributions of African and Native Americans, Latinos, and women.Our major areas of concentration are Anthropology, Old and New World Archaeology, Architecture, Art History, Botany, Classics and the Ancient World, Conservation and the Environment, Egyptology, Film and Media Studies, Geography, Landscape, Latin American and Latino Studies, Literary Modernism, Mexican American Studies, Marine Science, Middle Eastern Studies, Ornithology, Pre-Columbian Studies, Texas and Western Studies, and Women's Studies.

The University of Texas Press has published more than 2,000 books over five decades. Currently a staff of 50, under the direction of Joanna Hitchcock, brings out some 90 books and 11 journals annually.

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Books published by the Press are acquired initially by its sponsoring editors, who seek out the best manuscripts in their areas of specialization and send them to peer reviewers for further evaluation. The Faculty Advisory Committee, a group of faculty members appointed by the President of the University and the Faculty Council, then reviews the reports on each manuscript; the committee must give final approval to every book published. Our publications consistently win awards of national importance.

Each manuscript is copyedited to eliminate errors while preserving the author's style. State-of-the-art computers are used to design books that are recognized for their clean and classic look. All Press books are printed on acid-free paper for longevity.

The marketing department publicizes our books by distributing review copies, writing news releases, arranging book-signings and interviews with the media, placing advertisements, and organizing direct mail campaigns and book exhibits. Sales representatives sell our books throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. The rights and permissions department negotiates subsidiary rights and copublication arrangements with other organizations or publishers.

Each year, the order fulfillment department processes some fifty thousand orders. All orders are shipped from our on-site warehouse, which typically has nearly one million books in inventory.

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Our publishing programs in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences extend our reach far beyond the borders of Texas and even of the United States. We count among our authors some of the most respected scholars and writers in the hemisphere. Yet a rich source of literary material lies at our very feet on the University's Austin campus.

The University has built its reputation on its faculty, its nationally recognized centers for advanced study, and its archives and collections in literature, history, art, and the sciences—sources on which the Press has drawn for decades.From its earliest days, the Press has collaborated with the University's Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Center for Mexican American Studies, and Institute for Latin American Studies. Outside the University, our Southwestern Writers Collection Series is drawn from an archive at Texas State University at San Marcos.

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The Press is one of a relatively small number of university presses with a journals program, enabling us to get information and ideas quickly to scholars in fast-moving fields in the humanities and social sciences. Several of the Press's eleven journals are sponsored by academic institutions on our campus or edited by scholars from the University of Texas.

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