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SMU majors and salaries
Southern Methodist University · Dallas, Texas · Private nonprofit · 7,277 undergraduates
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft graduates earned the least four years out, a median of $35,844; the top program pays 3.7 times as much. Finance and Financial Management Services awards the most degrees here (606 over two years), and it also pays above most other programs: $133,852 four years out. American University, Sacred Heart University, Elon University, Chapman and The New School trail SMU on median earnings ten years after enrollment, while Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach is ahead.
Highest-paying bachelor's programs
Every program with earnings data
| Program | Graduates (2 yrs) | Median debt | Pay after 1 yr | Pay after 4 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 606 | $17,250 | $93,440 | $133,852 |
| Computer Science | 180 | $20,500 | $97,568 | $126,590 |
| Mathematics | 69 | $19,500 | $82,076 | $111,773 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 144 | $18,125 | $70,326 | $106,799 |
| Accounting and Related Services | 118 | $18,406 | – | $103,675 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | 72 | $20,500 | $59,270 | $93,769 |
| Economics | 319 | $18,500 | $62,429 | $91,701 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 99 | $25,000 | $82,252 | $90,649 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication | 240 | $17,375 | $56,398 | $89,330 |
| Marketing | 160 | $19,500 | $58,100 | $88,627 |
| Statistics | 79 | $12,000 | $80,552 | – |
| Operations Research | 67 | – | $80,235 | – |
| Biology, General | 181 | $18,010 | $36,133 | $78,466 |
| Psychology, General | 263 | $19,500 | $53,527 | $72,136 |
| Real Estate | 87 | – | $63,536 | – |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | 77 | – | $63,405 | – |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness | 229 | $17,750 | $53,477 | $62,838 |
| Design and Applied Arts | 23 | $14,000 | $60,893 | – |
| Communication and Media Studies | 81 | – | $57,636 | – |
| History | 49 | $19,500 | $54,915 | – |
| Political Science and Government | 124 | $17,750 | $53,269 | – |
| Journalism | 77 | $23,000 | $52,095 | – |
| Philosophy | 47 | $20,500 | $51,080 | – |
| Fine and Studio Arts | 39 | – | $50,693 | – |
| Public Policy Analysis | 88 | $18,750 | $49,286 | – |
| English Language and Literature, General | 33 | $19,500 | $45,378 | – |
| Sociology | 22 | – | $41,728 | – |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft | 45 | $21,500 | $44,127 | $35,844 |
| Film/Video and Photographic Arts | 76 | $21,500 | $30,199 | – |
Programs are grouped by four-digit CIP code, so one row can cover several related majors. "Graduates" counts bachelor's degrees awarded across the two years that make up each earnings cohort.
Outcomes
- Six-year graduation rate
- 83% (four-year colleges: 54% median)
- First-year students who return
- 91%
- Students per faculty member
- 11
- Median earnings 10 years after enrolling
- $90,037 (four-year colleges: $58,912 median)
- Median federal debt at graduation
- $18,750 (four-year colleges: $21,609 median)
Colleges similar to SMU
The six private nonprofit four-year colleges closest to SMU in acceptance rate and undergraduate enrollment.
| College | Acceptance rate | Avg net price | Earnings after 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|
| American University Washington, DC | 62% | $41,302 | $85,458 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach Daytona Beach, FL | 65% | $40,539 | $92,069 |
| Sacred Heart University Fairfield, CT | 65% | $45,827 | $80,896 |
| Elon University Elon, NC | 66% | $35,785 | $82,524 |
| Chapman Orange, CA | 65% | $46,708 | $80,694 |
| The New School New York, NY | 63% | $48,163 | $64,471 |
Program earnings and debt come from the College Scorecard field-of-study file: median pay of graduates who were working and not enrolled, one and four years after finishing, for two pooled graduating classes. Programs with too few graduates are suppressed by the Department of Education and do not appear. College Scorecard data updated November 2, 2026. How these figures are built · SMU on College Scorecard