Southern Methodist University
Dallas, Texas | Admissions Phone: 214-768-2058
E-mail: ugadmission@smu.edu | Website: www.smu.edu
ADMISSION
Admission Rate: 51%
Admission Rate - Men: 52%
Admission Rate - Women: 51%
EA Admission Rate: 55%
ED Admission Rate: 61%
Admission Rate (5-Year Trend): +1%
ED Admission Rate (5-Year Trend): N/A
% of Admits Attending (Yield): 24%
Transfer Admission Rate: 74%
# Offered Wait List: 1,746
# Accepted Wait List: 736
# Admitted Wait List: 21
SAT Reading/Writing (Middle 50%): 630-710
SAT Math (Middle 50%): 650-750
ACT Composite (Middle 50%): 29-33
Testing Policy: ACT/SAT Required
SAT Superscore: Yes
ACT Superscore: Yes
% Graduated in Top 10% of HS Class: 49%
% Graduated in Top 25% of HS Class: 80%
% Graduated in Top 50% of HS Class: 95%
ENROLLMENT
Total Undergraduate Enrollment: 6,479
% Part-Time: 3%
% Male: 51%
% Female: 49%
% Out-of-State: 55%
% Fraternity: 24%
% Sorority: 37%
% On-Campus (Freshman): 98%
% On-Campus (All Undergraduate): 54%
% African-American: 5%
% Asian: 7%
% Hispanic: 12%
% White: 64%
% Other: 4%
% Race or Ethnicity Unknown: 0%
% International: 8%
% Low-Income: 13%
ACADEMICS
Student-to-Faculty Ratio: 11:1
% of Classes Under 20: 59%
% of Classes Under 40: 85%
% Full-Time Faculty: 66%
% Full-Time Faculty w/ Terminal Degree: 84%
Top Programs
Accounting
Finance
Mathematics
Mechanical Engineering
Public Policy
Sport Management
Theatre
Retention Rate: 91%
4-Year Graduation Rate: 68%
6-Year Graduation Rate: 78%
Curricular Flexibility: Somewhat Flexible
Academic Rating: 
FINANCIAL
Institutional Type: Private
In-State Tuition: $50,200
Out-of-State Tuition: $50,200
Room & Board: $16,750
Required Fees: $6,360
Books & Supplies: $800
Avg. Need-Based Aid: $18,691
Avg. % of Need Met: 86%
Avg. Merit-Based Aid: $27,685
% Receiving Merit-Based Aid: 73%
Avg. Cumulative Debt: $38,086
% of Students Borrowing: 28%
CAREER
Who Recruits
1. Vira Insight
2. Epsilon
3. Dell
4. Frost Bank
5. Bank of America
Notable Internships
1. Dallas Mavericks
2. Cushman & Wakefield
3. Dell
Top Industries
1. Business
2. Education
3. Operations
4. Engineering
5. Sales
Top Employers
1. Lockheed Martin
2. AT&T
3. EY
4. IBM
5. Accenture
Where Alumni Work
1. Dallas
2. India
3. Houston
4. New York City
5. Austin
Median Earnings
College Scorecard (Early Career): $60,700
EOP (Early Career): $55,400
PayScale (Mid-Career): $110,400
RANKINGS
Forbes: 91
Money: 357
U.S. News: 64 (T), National Universities
Wall Street Journal/THE: 84 (T)
Washington Monthly: 308, National Universities
Inside the Classroom
Wealthy and moderately conservative—such is the reputation of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, a midsized private institution with a loyal alumni base and plenty of financial backing. Historically, a large percentage of the school’s 6,500 undergraduates come from families earning incomes in the top 5 percent of all families in the United States. While “Methodist” is in its name, only 14 percent of students identify as affiliating with that denomination; twice as many are Catholic. Academically, the Cox School of Business has one of the most respected faculties in the world, but that is by no means the only high-profile academic department; the public policy, sports management, performing arts, music, and film programs shine almost as brightly. In total, SMU offers one hundred+ majors and eighty-five minors.
The university’s curriculum was revised in 2016 and now involves fulfilling foundation, depth, and breadth requirements. While that may sound extensive, the school offers great flexibility within those categories, and many courses within one’s major will naturally fulfill some of the various mandates. Seven “proficiencies and experiences” can be met through a combination of coursework and noncredit activities that address each of human diversity, information literacy, oral communication, writing, community engagement, global engagement, and quantitative reasoning.
Thanks in part to an 11:1 student-to-faculty ratio, 59 percent of classes enroll fewer than twenty students, and fewer than 9 percent of classes enroll fifty+ undergraduates. Opportunities for personal connection and guidance extend beyond the classroom as 1,000 current SMU students have participated in undergraduate research or apprenticeships. Grants for independent research through an Engaged Learning Fellowship or a Summer Research Assistantship that pays students to work alongside faculty members for twenty-nine hours per week also are available. An annual symposium and an undergraduate-only research journal provide outlets through which you can share those valuable experiences. The 150 study abroad programs in fifty countries attract more than one-quarter of Mustangs at some point during their four years of study.
This career-minded student body gravitates toward preprofessional degrees, particularly in business (26 percent) and engineering (9 percent). SMU’s Cox School of Business is top-ranked and has especially strong ties to Wall Street. Programs in engineering, sports management, and the performing arts are also very well regarded. Most fresh SMU grads are targeting high-paying jobs or entering the graduate/professional school of their choosing, but a small number each year aim for (and win) prestigious fellowships. Mustangs are awarded between two and five Fulbright Scholarships per year, two to four Gilman Scholarships, and an occasional Goldwater or Truman Scholarship.
Outside the Classroom
Almost every freshman resides in one of the university’s eleven Residential Commons (which also houses sophomores), and 54 percent of all undergraduates call the dorms home; upperclassmen occupy six separate communities. Greek life is a huge part of the social fabric at SMU with 24 percent of men joining fraternities and 37 percent of women affiliating with a sorority. Sports are also a major force as the Mustangs field seventeen teams that compete in the American Athletic Conference against Division I competition. Impressively, SMU has won eighteen conference championships in the last five years. The football tradition at SMU is strong despite a series of recruiting scandals in the ’80s that led to the team being banned for the 1987 season. Now, money flows into the program legally, including the $27 million that funded a new indoor practice facility that opened in 2019. New buildings are popping up everywhere you look across campus, whether it’s the 50,000-square-foot Gerald J. Ford Hall for Research and Innovation or the Crain Family Centennial Promenade running through the heart of campus. The school routinely places near the top of “most beautiful campus” lists. Those not thrilled by Greeks and sports can still choose from over 200 campus organizations or venture into Dallas as the city’s downtown area is only a few miles from the school.
Career Services
The Hegi Family Development Center has eight full-time employees as well as two graduate assistants. Professionals fill roles such as career counselor and employer relations specialist, and the overall student-to-counselor ratio is 807:1, poorer than most midsized universities profiled in this guide. Events that take place on campus, including career fairs, draw as many as one hundred employers and 575 students. The All Majors Career Fair held in the fall of 2019 attracted fifty+ employers including heavy hitters like American Airlines, Southwest, Hershey’s, Mary Kay, and Home Depot.
SMU’s connected alumni base helps sustain strong school-to-employer bonds that lead to ample internship opportunities, particularly in the Dallas area. Business majors land internships at major investment firms and banks like Goldman Sachs, Citi, and JPMorgan Chase. A tremendous 90 percent of Lyle School of Engineering undergraduates complete at least one internship. Services offered by the Hegi Family Development Center include one-day externships, one-on-one career counseling that staff recommends “early and often,” and the facilitation of on-campus interviews with recruiters from 160 companies, including some in the Fortune 500. Becoming a Mustang enables undergraduates of all socioeconomic backgrounds to connect to industry through networking, experiential learning opportunities, and impactful corporate relationships.
Professional Outcomes
At the moment they receive their diplomas, over two-thirds of graduates already have their first jobs or graduate school destinations in hand. Six months after graduation, that figure rises to 93 percent. The major corporations employing the greatest number of Mustangs are Lockheed Martin, AT&T, EY, IBM, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Deloitte, American Airlines, Accenture, Oracle, Amazon, and Goldman Sachs. While close to half of SMU alums stay close to their alma mater in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, many relocate to New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, or DC for work. Average salaries for graduates of the Cox School of Business ranged between $50k for management majors to $70k for finance majors. Across all colleges and majors the average starting salary was $55,000.
In a typical year, one-quarter of seniors elect to continue their education in pursuit of a graduate or professional degree. SMU itself is a popular choice, but graduates have no shortage of options, including at the nation’s top universities. Of the eighty-three SMU grads applying to begin medical school in 2018, a solid 58 percent gained acceptance, better than the national average that year of 43 percent. Acceptances included the Baylor College of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. The roughly one hundred pre-law students enjoy an annual acceptance rate hovering between 70 and 85 percent. Each year, forty students enter the Pre-Law Scholars Program, which puts them on track to attend SMU’s Dedman School of Law upon graduation. Other grads in recent years have entered prestigious law schools such as those at Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Penn, Stanford, and Yale.
Admission
The 12,603 applicants to the Class of 2022 was a slight dip from the previous two admissions cycles but a still a big jump from the roughly 8,000 applications received in 2009. Fifty-one percent of Class of 2022 applicants were accepted, and 24 percent of those admitted chose to attend SMU. Standardized test scores have demonstrated a strong and consistent upward trend over the past decade; in 2008 the average SAT score was 1228, and the average ACT score was 27. Today, the average SAT score is 1363, and the average ACT score is a 30. Almost half finished in the top decile of their high school class, and 80 percent were at least in the top quartile. The average GPA for incoming freshmen is 3.63, and 45 percent of that group possessed a 3.75 or higher.
There are five “very important” factors given top priority by the SMU Admissions Committee: GPA, standardized test scores, rigor of coursework, recommendations, and application essays. That holistic and deep review also grants “important” status to class rank, extracurricular activities, talent/ability, and character/personal qualities. Demonstrated interest is a minor factor in the process as are first-generation or legacy status. Southern Methodist University offers an early decision option with a November 15 deadline that yields a small admissions edge; ED applicants get in at a 61percent clip. SMU also offers a second ED option with a January 15 deadline.
Worth Your Money?
Along with schools like Columbia, USC, and the University of Chicago, Southern Methodist University is near the top of the list of schools with the highest sticker prices in the country. The estimated total cost of attendance for an SMU student in 2019-20 was $76,786. So is a non-Ivy worth an Ivy price tag? Perhaps, especially after accounting for financial aid. The university is generous with merit scholarships, awarding 73 percent of students an average of $28,000 per year. Need-based aid is also disbursed freely to the point that the average cost of attendance, even for families in the highest income bracket, is $43,000; families making $75k-$110k pay $32,500 per year, less than half the list price. Many majors within the Cox School of Business and Lyle School of Engineering start their careers with salaries that will easily cover a reasonable student loan payment.