Southern Methodist University – University Park, Texas

Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a private research university in University Park, Texas, the US with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico.  SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South—now part of the United Methodist Church—in partnership with Dallas civic leaders. However, it is nonsectarian in its teaching and enrolls students of all religious affiliations. It is classified among “R-2: Doctoral Universities – High Research Activity”.

As of fall 2020, the university had 12,373 students, including 6,827 undergraduates and 5,546 postgraduates, representing the largest student body in SMU history.  As of fall 2019, its instructional faculty is 1,151, with 754 being full-time.

In the 2020 academic year, the university granted over 3,827 degrees, including 315 doctorates, 1,659 master’s and 1,853 bachelor’s degrees and offers over 32 doctoral and over 120 masters programs from eight schools: the Edwin L. Cox School of Business, the Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, the Dedman School of Law, the Bobby B. Lyle School of Engineering, the Algur H. Meadows School of the Arts, the Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies, Perkins School of Theology, and the Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development.

Campuses

Main Campus

The main campus of Southern Methodist University is located in Highland Park and University Park, both of which are incorporated enclaves of Dallas, Texas. It is located on 234 acres of land just west of US Route 75. Dallas Hall is the centerpiece for this campus and is the administrative center for the Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences.

Most of the campus is centered around Bishop Boulevard, an elongated, tree-lined loop road that also serves as the site for “Boulevard,” SMU’s version of the tailgating scene on many American college campuses.  The campus was ranked as the most beautiful campus in America by Condé Nast Traveler in 2016 and also hosts the George W. Bush Presidential Center, located on the east side of the campus. The library and museum are privately administered by the National Archives and Records Administration, while the university holds representation on the institute board.

Taos campus

Since 1973, the university has owned a 423-acre campus located at Fort Burgwin, just outside of Taos, New Mexico. This campus hosts classes during intersessions between semesters and during the summer.  Along with the normal academic courses offered at the site, students attending classes at this campus during the winter can opt to attend wellness classes centered around winter sports. Other courses offered at this campus are sometimes adjusted to utilize the surrounding environment, such as a course in field botany offered during some summers.

Plano campus

Southern Methodist University operates a small campus, consisting of 16 acres and 4 buildings, in Plano, Texas, in Legacy Business Park. This campus hosts SMU’s video game design school, SMU Guildhall, and other graduate-level programs.  After the university sold the Plano campus to a developer in 2019, SMU Guildhall and all other programs housed there are slated to move onto the main Dallas campus in the new Gerald J. Ford Research Center by 2020.

BURLESON PARK – UNIVERSITY PARK, TEXAS

Texas › University Park › Party Equipment Rentals ›