SMU by the numbers
Top 20%
of national universities
(U.S. News & World Report 2024)
No. 1
Dallas-area schools
(U.S. News & World Report 2024)
31.9
Average ACT score of incoming first-years in 2023
Best
Undergraduateteaching
(U.S. News & World Report 2023)
11,842
Students representing 50 states and 87 countries
No. 46
Best Graduate Schools
Dedman School of Law
(U.S. News & World Report 2024)
No. 33
Best Graduate Schools
Cox School of Business
full-time MBA
(U.S. News & World Report 2024)
No. 49
Best Graduate Schools
Simmons School of Education
and Human Development
(U.S. News & World Report 2024)
Excellent results
71%
The average salary for SMU grads is 71% more than the average salary nationwide for college graduates with bachelor’s degrees.
(College Factual 2023)
No. 33 worldwide
for alumni employment among 20,531 institutions
(Center for World University Rankings)
Top 7%
of best colleges for salary potential
(PayScale College Salary Report)
Top performer
- Social mobility
(U.S. News & World Report 2023)
SMU’s entry into the ACC on July 1, 2024, highlights SMU Athletics as a nationally recognized competitive program that complements the University’s outstanding academic reputation.
Football
Ranked in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024
Received votes in 2022
Men’s Basketball
Ranked or received votes in 8 of the last 11 seasons
10
Team national championships
100+
Individual national championships
17
Since 2021, ALL 17 sports have advanced to postseason
6
Straight
Bowl berths
67%
Cumulative GPAs of 3.0 or higher
33%
Cumulative GPAs of 3.5 or higher
91%
Graduation rate
16
Different sports have won conference titles in the past 10 years
150+
NCAA top 10 team finishes
213
Conference titles
Over $250 million invested
In championship-caliber facilities since 2013
Excellent location
No. 4
U.S. metro area
Dallas-Fort Worth is projected to become the third largest (surpassing Chicago) sometime in the 2030s
2
Major airports:
DFW International
and Love Field
20+
Dallas area is home to 20+ Fortune 500 companies – placing us among the top 5 U.S. metro areas
No. 1
Dallas is the Best Sports Business City
(Sports Business Journal 2023)
Find your place
SMU has myriad resources for students to tap into unique internship opportunities and utilize the SMU alumni network throughout Dallas-Fort Worth to succeed in the workplace.