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Finance at SMU

SMU graduates about 308 finance majors a year, 15% of its graduating class. That puts it 5th of 539 schools we score for finance, a standout program at 95 out of 100. Graduates in the major earn a median $134,000 four years out, 1.58× what the same major pays nationally. Research spending in the field runs about $5 million a year, a rough guide to how many labs and projects undergraduates can join.

95/100Standout#5 of 539 for finance →
Graduates a year30815% of the class
Median pay 4 years out$134,0001.58× the same major nationally
Research in the field$5Ma year, NSF
Admit rate48%whole school
SAT middle 50%1360–1470whole school

Around SMU

The Cox School of Business on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Uni
Southern Methodist University July 2016 112 (Cox School of Business)Photo: Michael Barera · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
The Crain Family Centennial Promenade on the campus of Southern Methodist Univer
Southern Methodist University July 2016 058 (Crain Family Centennial Promenade)Photo: Michael Barera · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
The Crain Family Centennial Promenade on the campus of Southern Methodist Univer
Southern Methodist University July 2016 057 (Crain Family Centennial Promenade)Photo: Michael Barera · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Boaz Commons on the campus of Southern Methodist University in University Park,
Southern Methodist University July 2016 117 (Boaz Commons)Photo: Michael Barera · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Where finance happens

Named buildings on the campus map: Dorm 38 · Academic 26 · Dining 10 · Chapel 4 · Athletics 4 · Arts 3.

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Nearby in the finance ranking

  1. University of Pennsylvania 100
  2. Georgetown University 98
  3. University of Notre Dame 97
  4. University of Wisconsin–Madison 96
  5. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 95
  6. The University of Texas–Austin 95
  7. Brigham Young University 94
  8. Syracuse University 93

Other strong majors at SMU

How the score works

The score is out of 100 and compares SMU with every school we score in finance. It weighs what graduates earn four years out against the same major nationally (25%), research spending in the field (20%, NSF), how many undergraduate courses the department lists (20%), the student body's test scores (20%) and the size of the program (15%, capped so size alone can't win). 80+ is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid. Sources: US Department of Education (College Scorecard, IPEDS), NSF HERD, each school's current course catalog, OpenStreetMap and Wikimedia Commons.

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