Southern Methodist University is one among the top 11% of the universities in the United States, according to the Wall Street Journal. It takes the 4th position out of 800 colleges and universities in Texas according to the publication. The university is located in Dallas, a global center of business and commerce. This factor is instrumental in enhancing the career prospects and social life of SMU graduates.

Southern Methodist University Global Rankings

QS Top Universities

QS top universities have ranked Southern Methodist University based on various criteria that include aspects of faculty-student ratio and international students. The ranking over the past few years has been tabulated below for your reference.

Year 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ranks 701+ 701+ 701-750 651-700 701-750 701-750 801-1000

The source ranks the ‘ Economics and Econometrics’ program globally. The ranking over the years and the criteria used are given below.

Year 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ranks 351-400 451-500 301-350 351-400

US News and World Report

US News and World Report rank the university 507 globally. Southern Methodist University also gets ranked by the publication on various criteria on a global level.

US News Ranking Criteria 2022 Rank
Global research reputation 910
Regional research reputation 207
Publications 1046
Books 607
Conferences 1109
Normalized citation impact 401
Total citations 858
International collaborations- relative to the country 151
International collaborations 686

We can infer from the table that SMU has a good reputation for its international collaborations. This enables its graduates to get ready as global competitors.

Southern Methodist University National Ranking

The national ranking of SMU by various sources is tabulated below.

Source SMU National Rank 2022
QS top universities 121-130
Times Higher Education 94
US News and world report 68


US News and World report rank universities that come under the Carnegie classification. This is used by the Department of Education for the classification of higher education institutes. SMU comes under the National University category- one which provides a full range of undergraduate, graduate, and professional courses. US News’s National Ranking (2021) of Southern Methodist University is 66th.

The US News ranks the university in the following aspects as well:

  • The best college for veterans- No.38
  • Best value schools- No.151
  • Performance in social mobility- No.373
  • Best Online Masters in Engineering Program- No.74-94

Categories like ‘value schools’ and ‘social mobility’ prove that apart from academics the university provides a congenial and warm space for students across various economic backgrounds.

Southern Methodist University Employment Rankings

Southern Methodist University was one among 300 in the Forbes ‘ Best Value College Ranking 2019’. SMU was considered ‘worth the investment’ by the publication. The ranking was based on quality, net price, alumni earnings, net debt, and access for low-income students.

Stacker considered SMU one of 100 private colleges in the nation with the best Return on Investment. College factual, a publication whose rankings are based on student outcomes, considered SMU among its top 5% in pay for graduates. Southern Methodist University is also No. 1 in producing the highest-paid music graduates.

Payscale’s 2021-22 college salary reports consider SMU among its top 19% for ‘Best College for Salary Potential’ and its top 7% for ‘ Highest-Paid Graduates’ categories.

Apart from the quality of education and the citations held by the faculty, the high graduate employment rates in SMU is because of its location. Dallas is one of the fastest-growing regions in terms of economy in the United States. A few features of Dallas in terms of job prospects for students are mentioned below.

  • Home to 300 corporate headquarters
  • Houses 21 Fortune 500 companies
  • 7 of Forbes’ private companies are located
  • DFW- No.1 metro area for STEM jobs
  • Comes 3rd out of 500 cities for innovation
  • Comes 2nd in the nation for Business and careers
  • Top 100 US cities to live, work and visit
  • Top North Texas cities in terms of quality of life and affordability.

Rankings of the Schools at Southern Methodist University

Cox School of Business

The business school of SMU is considered to be among the top 10% business schools of 2022 in the USA. Following are the various positions occupied by the school in different categories.

Source Category Rank For Cox Business School Year
US news Best Full-Time MBA program 44 2022
US news Best Part time MBA program 57 2022
The Economist Best Full-Time MBA program 10 2022
The Economist Best Executive MBA program 47 2022
The Economist Best Potential to network 6 2022
The Economist The breadth of Alumni Network 19 2022
Bloomberg Businessweek Best BBA program 21 2022
Bloomberg Businessweek Best post-graduation BBA salary 5 2022

The Business school’s full-time MBA program has jumped two positions up since last year. The Poets and Quants for Undergraduates have given the university the 11th position, out of 97 colleges for the ‘Nations top MBA program’. The rank is given on the basis of academic experience, placements, and administrative standards.

Dedman School of Law

The law school of SMU is quite famous and has featured in the “Go- to Law schools” section of the National Law Journal. Some data regarding its academic status is tabulated below.

Source Category Rank For Dedman Law School
National Law Journal Go- to Law Schools 20
National Law Journal Graduates hired in top 100 law firms 30
U.S Department of Education The median salary of graduates 23
US News and world report Employment 10 months after graduation 33

The Southern Methodist University’s Law school has come under 50 in all categories, making it prestigious and worthy to enroll in.

Lyle School of Engineering 

The school of engineering is among the top 26% in the ‘Best Undergraduate Engineering Program’ category by US news. The other positions held by this college are tabulated below.

Source Category Lyle School Of Engineering Ranking
The Chronicle of Higher Education Best Private Schools 9
The Master’s programs Guide Best Online Master of Science in Civil Engineering Degree 19
The Master’s programs Guide Best Online Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering Degree 30
The Guide to Online Schools Best Online Master of Science in Computer Engineering Degree 11
The Guide to Online Schools Best Online Master of Science in Systems Engineering Degree 22
DIVERSE Issues in Higher Education Best Computer and Information Sciences program 39
DIVERSE Issues in Higher Education Top 100 producers of graduate students in STEM 48

The college has also been a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defence Education for fifteen years now.

Meadows School of Art

Dallas is not just a growing economic center but also is also the largest art district in the country. The Meadows School of Arts has definitely leveraged the advantages due to its physical location. This has enabled it to secure various honorable positions in the country.

Source Category Meadows School Of Arts Position
Dance Teacher Magazine College dance programs you should know Top 14
Onstage Best B.F.A dance program in country Top 30
The Hollywood Reporter Best graduate acting program in the world Top 25
Turbo Scholars Top 15 Film Schools in Texas 2
College Factual Highest Paid Music Graduates 1

Dedman College of Humanities

The median salary for the students graduating from this school is quite high. This factor has made it secure the 14th position among 25 colleges in 2022.

DIVERSE Issues In Higher Education has ranked this college in the 15th position in mathematics and statistics.

The Southern Methodist University feels proud of having an academic relationship with the Bush Presidential Center. The US presidential library is honored to achieve the LEED platinum certification for its eco-friendly design and construction.

The sports teams of Southern Methodist University compete in the NCAA division. 10 congressmen and 2 US senators are alumni of SMU. The University’s church- the Perkins Chapel- is ranked 16 out of 35 churches in the country.

Southern Methodist University provides one of the nation’s best undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs. It gives the students a good blend of academic quality and industry exposure. The art and culture of the city makes it a good place to live and work too.