---
title: Southern Methodist University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Dallas, TX
control: Private nonprofit
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Southern Methodist University

Dallas, TX · Private nonprofit · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $78,354 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $50,337 – $121,566 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $15,311 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $7,000 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 84% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $85,606 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 82% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.20× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $50,354 | derived |

**84% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $15,311 (≈ 20% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $19,854 to $118,537 across 42 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $118,537 | $98,182 |
| Information Science/Studies. | Master's Degree | $115,112 | $52,712 |
| Computer Systems Analysis. | Master's Degree | $108,251 | $95,275 |
| Systems Engineering. | Master's Degree | $104,021 | not reported |
| Engineering-Related Fields. | Master's Degree | $101,824 | not reported |
| Computer Engineering. | Master's Degree | $101,163 | not reported |
| Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations. | Master's Degree | $100,915 | $70,114 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Master's Degree | $99,239 | $85,733 |
| Real Estate. | Master's Degree | $90,176 | $51,966 |
| Marketing. | Master's Degree | $89,842 | not reported |
| Manufacturing Engineering. | Master's Degree | $88,879 | not reported |
| Law. | First Professional Degree | $81,633 | $145,569 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Master's Degree | $78,145 | $50,500 |
| Computer Science. | Bachelor's Degree | $74,528 | $25,625 |
| Mathematics. | Bachelor's Degree | $68,463 | $20,000 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $68,406 | $16,188 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $66,678 | $19,439 |
| Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education. | Master's Degree | $61,009 | not reported |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Master's Degree | $60,976 | $36,500 |
| Education, Other. | Master's Degree | $55,054 | $20,500 |
| Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies. | Master's Degree | $54,909 | $60,100 |
| Graphic Communications. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $53,465 | not reported |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $52,225 | $19,000 |
| Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $50,628 | $18,625 |
| Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution. | Master's Degree | $49,815 | $42,000 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Master's Degree | $48,576 | not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Bachelor's Degree | $47,744 | not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Master's Degree | $47,515 | not reported |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,216 | $22,581 |
| Theological and Ministerial Studies. | Master's Degree | $43,670 | $66,844 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $43,384 | $19,730 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,606 | $19,500 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,687 | $23,250 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,996 | not reported |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,698 | not reported |
| Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. | Master's Degree | $37,665 | $71,062 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $35,802 | $22,280 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,322 | $20,500 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,053 | $19,500 |
| Public Policy Analysis. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,063 | $19,500 |
| Music. | Master's Degree | $25,103 | not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $19,854 | $22,000 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Southern Methodist University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?228246

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/southern-methodist-university-tx.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`