Is SMU no longer a "cool" school?

Longtime · Post by **Longtime** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 3:35 pm

Maybe it's just me, but it seems that SMU is no longer a top choice among recent high school graduates - and for a lot of reasons.

All I know is what I see in my Dallas-area suburban neighborhood, an area that typically sent a number of graduates to SMU. They recently held an event to honor the outgoing seniors on the footbal team, band, drill team, etc. Not ONE was going to SMU. Several were going to TCU, which seems to be the "hot" private school among kids these days. You're always going to have a certain number of UT, A&M and Baylor-bound kids. More are headed to Tech nowadays, because of that school's growth and the difficulty of getting into UT and A&M. SMU always seemed to be in the mix with the other popular schools, but I'm not so sure anymore.

This isn't a one-time deal. You used to see an occassional SMU T-shirt worn by some of the local HS kids, especially those involved in extracurriculars. Now it's extremely rare, but I do see more and more TCU stuff. Even my niece, who graduates next year from another suburban school, is interested in TCU - and she's been going to SMU games since she was born.

Obviously, the biggest difference between TCU and SMU these days is athletic success. Is that why TCU is a popular choice and SMU isn't? (Again based on personal observation). I also suspect that TCU actively recruits more local (D-FW) kids these days than SMU.

A neighbor and his wife both graduated from SMU. They used to hang an SMU flag on the front of their house, but now it's a TCU flag because their son goes there. The neighbor said his son was accepted to both SMU and TCU, but TCU offered more financial aid. He said SMU wouldn't even try to come close to TCU's offer, even though both parents are alums.

I'm not sure what the real facts are, but it does seem that SMU is no longer a "cool" choice for local HS kids these days. This bothers me because SMU is already alienated enough from the D-FW populus.

jtstang · Post by **jtstang** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 3:38 pm

I went to SMU after growing up locally and I think that most people in my high school left town because they wanted to experience life away from mom and dad. Seems like that had more to do with it than whether or not SMU was good in football.

smupony94 · Post by **smupony94** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 3:39 pm

Just like basketball, SMU does not recruit Dallas and gets plenty of talent from all over the country.

I graduated from high school in Austin and wanted to get the hell away from Austin.

PonyB · Post by **PonyB** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 3:53 pm

TCUs standards are lower and it is less expensive

NickSMU17 · Post by **NickSMU17** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 5:48 pm

SMU is slowly climbing the ranks into a national school, with much higher standards academic wise than TCU...

A lot of people that got in even 5 years ago could no longer get in...

Average ACT is above 28 now...

I would also think that in the past 2 or 3 years with credit drying up and home values decreasing that SMU has become cost prohibitive...

jkflamebo · Post by **jkflamebo** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 6:15 pm

NickSMU17 wrote:SMU is slowly climbing the ranks into a national school, with much higher standards academic wise than TCU...

A lot of people that got in even 5 years ago could no longer get in...

Average ACT is above 28 now...

I would also think that in the past 2 or 3 years with credit drying up and home values decreasing that SMU has become cost prohibitive...

ding ding ding. thats a winning post

htownponyfan · Post by **htownponyfan** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 7:02 pm

jkflamebo wrote:
NickSMU17 wrote:SMU is slowly climbing the ranks into a national school, with much higher standards academic wise than TCU...

A lot of people that got in even 5 years ago could no longer get in...

Average ACT is above 28 now...

I would also think that in the past 2 or 3 years with credit drying up and home values decreasing that SMU has become cost prohibitive...

ding ding ding. thats a winning post

Completely agree. The increase in admissions standards gives the school the ability to select from a smarter, more geographically diverse population. I am glad to see that my alma mater is making strides in academic quality, and I hope that it can catch up in athletics as well.

Longtime · Post by **Longtime** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 1:02 pm

Well, I hope it's true that SMU is raising its standards. But the target group I'm talking about would have the grades and the financing to attend SMU.

SMU is always going to have a negative appeal to most Dallas-area kids because it's in Dallas. But back when I went to SMU in the pre-DP era, we had a ton of Dallas-area students. If it's a hot school, it doesn't matter where it is.

Kids will overlook being close to mommy and daddy if they really like the school. SMU is such an isolated campus that doesn't really mingle with other parts of the Dallas area (outside of the bars, of course) so you can justify "staying home" to go to school. At least that's how I found it to be. The hard part is convincing mommy and daddy that you shouldn't live at home while attending SMU.

I never went on SMU's campus when I was in high school, even though I lived just a few miles away. It's not like growing up in Lubbock or Austin where you're constantly bombarded with images of the local school. It's hard to even find an SMU sticker on a car unless you're near campus.

NickSMU17 · Post by **NickSMU17** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:33 pm

In my little Suburb here in Chicago, I frequently see SMU stickers...I would say the local high school sends 4 or 5 kids to SMU a year...

Not sure why there would be a drop off locally.

couch 'em · Post by **couch 'em** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:42 pm

Unless you are talking about a few select areas, SMU has priced itself far out of what most people can afford. Let's not forget that 4 years of SMU exceeds $100,000.

With the top 10% rule most anyone who could go to college like SMU from a middle class or lower area is automatically admitted to UT, A&M, etc. Most have no reason to go to SMU - certainly not sports or familiar culture.

jtstang · Post by **jtstang** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:46 pm

It's damned expensive, that's for sure.

couch 'em · Post by **couch 'em** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 3:02 pm

They also have been raising tuition like 10% every year.

expony18 · Post by **expony18** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 8:03 am

all colleges do...

bubba pony · Post by **bubba pony** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 12:31 pm

As a parent having recently gone through the college search, we looked at Syracuse, Villanova, Lehigh which all cost more than SMU. SMU is about $44k a year plus books, etc so nearing $200k total. We decided on sending our child to SMU. She just completed her first year and we got everything we paid for. Yes, it's a struggle to come up with the funds but it's a life long investment.

The SMU alumni representative for the Northeast had lunch with us a year ago. She told us that 40% of the students are from outside TX. SMU wants 50% enrollment to come from outside TX because they want to expand its national and international reputation. There is some truth to this because in NJ hangs an SMU flag on the front of our house even during winter snow storms.

OK, now the important stuff. All the schools we looked at, daddy (me), inquired about what does the school do to assist and ready graduates to find employment? SMU was way ahead of the others including UT Austin. The jobs posted for SMU student internship are plentiful. Now I'm stating some information from memory and I'm sure someone will prove me wrong but Newsweek or some magazine rates SMU something like 60th hardest school to get into but 13th in preparing graduates to get a decent job. I'm simplifying this but you get the point. Dallas is the 9th largest city in the USA and DFW is the 4th largest metropolitan area. An SMU degree in DFW caries some prestige and job hunting in SMU├â┬ó├óΓÇÜ┬¼├óΓÇ₧┬ós front yard is a benefit. Also, somewhere on the SMU web site they claimed that the average graduate, not counting business school, earns $40k stating salary. I believe I did my homework correctly and in 3 years from now, I expect to be able to report that SMU has turned out a mature, educated, grateful, and decently compensated graduate who will be a life long proud alumnus.

gostangs · Post by **gostangs** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 11:12 pm

Some of it is just a numbers game - TCU is bigger undergrad (slightly) and almost all Texas. SMU is getting close to 50% out of state. So there are a bunch fewer spots for local kids at SMU.

That said - if you are in Dallas - SMU is not viewed as going away to college. I think some better sports would help us keep who we want to keep. We lose very few to TCU that we care about....(talking about students - not athletes).

In the high school my kids go to TCU was hot for awhile among the mid level students - but has fallen off quite a bit since Texas now seems to accept more then they used to. Nobody in the top 25% goes to TCU - SMU gets a few, but at the top of the class its mostly UT and then southern privates (Vandy, Wake, Duke, etc...)