Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences: General Information

History

Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences has been the intellectual heart of the University since SMU was founded in 1911. The college, one of the nation’s premier liberal arts institutions, has earned a reputation for the breadth and depth of its graduate programs and the quality of its learning and research resources. Graduate work at the master’s level has been offered at SMU since the University first opened its doors in 1915 and doctoral work began in 1959.

Research Facilities

The teaching laboratories of the departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Earth Sciences and Physics are housed in the Fondren Science Building and in the Dedman Life Sciences Building. Students have access to a wide array of specialized instrumentation and laboratory equipment fundamental to studies in the natural sciences, including spectrophotometers, high-performance liquid chromatographs, scintillation counter, fluorescence-activated cell sorter, scanning laser confocal microscope, electron resonance spectrometer, X-ray diffractometers, mass spectrometers and an atomic absorption spectrometer. Advanced undergraduate research is also supported by tissue culture and animal care facilities, as well as through several departmental computer laboratories.

The N.L. Heroy Science Hall houses the departments of Anthropology, Earth Sciences and Statistical Sciences, as well as the Institute for the Study of Earth and Man. The Institute for the Study of Earth and Man was created in 1966 by a gift from W.B. Heroy, Sr. Its purpose is to support research at the interface of humans, Earth and the environment.

The Department of Anthropology operates the following research laboratories:

• The Geoarchaeology Laboratory processes and analyzes soil and sediment samples as part of interdisciplinary archaeological research projects. Work in the lab follows two major threads: 1) paleofire and paleoenvironmental research using terrestrial sedimentary archives associated with archaeological landscapes and 2) behavioral geoarchaeology projects that use anthrosol chemistry and soil micromorphology to reconstruct activity areas or the life histories of domestic and public spaces. Specialized equipment includes a large-volume drying oven, large-volume muffle furnace, benchtop centrifuge, orbital shaker, portable phosphate colorimeter and benchtop magnetic susceptibility meter. Projects also benefit from partnerships with the SMU Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences and their facilities.
• The Material Sciences Laboratory processes artifact collections and conducts data entry for artifacts collected from archeological sites in the American Southwest and Texas. It conducts experimental research with clays, temper and ceramics and contains 3-D scanning equipment, a ceramic kiln, muffle furnace, drying oven, and digital and petrographic microscopes.
• The Laboratory of Traditional Technology is used for carrying out systematic technological and performance analyses of materials from archeological sites, as well as experimental archaeological research, to better understand variability in regional assemblages. On-site special equipment includes binocular microscopes and muffle furnaces.
• The Medical Anthropology Laboratory, funded by the National Institutes of Mental Health and the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health research, includes data storage, office space for one research assistant and audio recording equipment.
• The Migration Laboratory, originally funded by the National Science Foundation and the Russell Sage Foundation, includes data storage, telephone and voicemail, one desktop computer, a library of books on immigration, and office space for two to three graduate students.
• The Molecular Anthropology Laboratories specialize in the analysis of DNA from both modern and archaeological samples to address classic problems in anthropology.
• The Zooarchaeology Laboratory houses a large collection of comparative mammalian and avian skeletal remains. The collections also include several unique experimental and one of the largest ethnoarchaeological faunal assemblages in the country.
• Geospatial Laboratory computers have software used in GIS analysis.
• The QUEST Archaeological Program maintains laboratories to analyze archeological materials (artifacts, faunal remains and sediments) collected in the course of fieldwork (primarily excavations). Equipment for analyzing sediments includes special ovens and related laboratory tools. In addition, the lab houses extensive comparative collections used for research and teaching. Archaeological collections, including the Tony Baker Paleoindian Collection, are available for study by qualified researchers.
• The Environment and Infrastructure Laboratory functions as a space to complete studies in environment, infrastructure, water, pollution, and health in anthropology. The lab currently houses citizen science equipment and ethnographic data collection tools, along with a computer that has advanced qualitative analysis software.

The Department of Earth Sciences operates several unique laboratories, including the following:

• The Dallas Seismological Observatory, established by the Dallas Geophysical Society and maintained and operated by the University, monitors remote seismic and infrasound stations in the western United States. The Lajitas array in Southwest Texas is used to test technology designed to detect small earthquakes from great distances. SMU operates seismic and infrasound arrays in Nevada and overseas locations. Data collected by the observatory are available to the faculty and advanced students who wish to undertake basic research in seismology, tectonics or infrasound.
• The Ellis W. Shuler Museum of Paleontology houses research and teaching collections of fossil vertebrates, invertebrates and plants. The museum supports opportunities for advanced study of fossil faunas and floras and their evolutionary, climatic and paleoecologic significance. The collection, which specializes in vertebrate paleontology and paleobotany, includes more than 150,000 fossils. The research perspective is global, with particular strengths in advanced imaging techniques and interdisciplinary studies. Students participate in research on the collections, and many are employed in the museum’s fully equipped preparation laboratories.
• The Pollen Analysis Laboratory serves SMU research projects focused on the reconstruction of past vegetation, past climate and paleoecology at localities around the world. The facility includes two fume hoods, glassware, centrifuges, scales, a convection oven, and storage space necessary for the dry and wet processing of sediment samples for their pollen content. The laboratory is also used for the processing of fossil plant cuticle. Microscopic analysis of the resulting pollen-sample residues and cuticle slides takes place in a separate laboratory housing transmitted light and epifluorescence microscopes, a comparative collection of modern pollen, and a small paleobotany and palynology research library. Work in this laboratory is often supplemented by facilities in the Scanning Electron Microscope laboratory (described below).
• The Geothermal Laboratory is the focus of an extensive, worldwide program of research in the thermal field of the Earth. Special topics of concentration include characterization and location of geothermal energy resources in sedimentary basins related to oil and gas wells, resource evaluation of enhanced geothermal systems, climate change determination in well profiles, and research on methane hydrates. Mapping of the crustal heat flow of North America was completed in 2004 and updated in 2011. As part of the Google.org heat flow project, the U.S. temperatures-at-depth were mapped in detail to 10 kilometers. Specialized equipment for the measurement of the thermal conductivity of rocks and for the measurement of accurate, precise temperature logs in deep wells is available for research purposes. Services are provided to other institutions and research centers on a contractual basis.
• The Hydrothermal Laboratory contains equipment to reproduce the pressures and temperatures existing to midcrustal depths. It contains two extraction-quench sampling bombs that permit withdrawal of solution during the progress of a run to pressures of 3 kbar and temperatures of 750 degrees Celsius. There are also 10 cold-seal reaction vessels. In addition, 1-atm furnaces are available that can be used to temperatures of 1400 degrees Celsius.
• The Stable Isotope Laboratory is a general research facility available to support both academic and student research at the University and in other research centers. The laboratory contains three automated gas-source, magnetic-sector isotope ratio mass spectrometers as well as vacuum extraction lines for converting natural materials (solids, liquids) into gases suitable for measuring the isotope ratios of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen at natural abundance.
• The Variable Pressure Scanning Electron Microscope Laboratory contains a Zeiss SMT 1450 VPSE SEM used for generating electron photomicrographs with 5-nm resolution. The SEM is open to researchers and students from the departments of Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Anthropology, Engineering and Chemistry. The facility is also equipped with an Edax energy dispersive X-ray system for quantitative determination of elemental compositions of the imaged materials.
• The X-ray Diffraction Laboratory houses a Rigaku Ultima III diffractometer for the X-ray identification of materials with a crystalline structure and is open to researchers and students from the departments of Anthropology, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences and Engineering.
• The X-ray Fluorescence Laboratory houses a Thermo Scientific ARL PERFORM’X X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. XRF analysis is a widely used analytical technique to determine the elemental composition from 10 ppm to 100 percent of a wide range of samples, both solids and liquids, with easy sample preparation and nondestructive analysis. The lab and its sample preparation tools are available to researchers and students working in Earth sciences, environmental sciences, anthropology, engineering and chemistry.
• The Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectrometer Laboratory, located in the Department of Chemistry, houses a 500 MHz JEOL NMR spectrometer and a 400 MHz Bruker NMR spectrometer, which are available to students and researchers. These instruments are the research progenitors of medical MRI scanners, capable of scanning 1H, 13C, 31P and many other nuclei.

Degrees Offered

The degrees available through the graduate faculty of Dedman College are the M.A., M.S. and Ph.D.

• Anthropology, M.A. , Ph.D .
• Medical Anthropology, M.A.  
• Molecular and Cellular Biology, M.A. , M.S. , Ph.D .
• Chemistry, M.S.  
• Chemistry, Ph.D., Materials/Polymer Track  
• Chemistry, Ph.D., Organic/Medicinal/Bioorganic Track  
• Data Science, M.S.D.S.  
• Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, Ph.D.  
• Geology, M.S. , Ph.D.  
• Geophysics, M.S. , Ph.D.  
• Applied Geophysics, M.S.  
• Economics, M.A. , Ph.D.  
• Applied Economics Graduate Certificate  
• Applied Economics, M.A., Applied Economics Track  
• Applied Economics, M.A., International Economics and Policy Track  
• Applied Economics, M.A., Law and Economics Track  
• Applied Economics and Predictive Analytics, M.S.  
• English, M.A. , Ph.D.  
• History, M.A. , Ph.D.  
• Computational and Applied Mathematics, M.S. , Ph.D.  
• Medieval Studies, M.A.  
• Physics, M.S. , Ph.D.  
• Psychology, M.A. , Ph.D.  
• Religious Studies, M.A. , Ph.D.  
• Statistical Science, M.S. , Ph.D.  
• Applied Statistics and Data Analytics, M.S.  
• Biostatistics, Ph.D.  
• Women’s and Gender Studies, Graduate Certificate  

Admission

Admission may be of two types:

1. Full, without restriction.
2. Nondegree, when the student needs background courses or desires transferable graduate credit for certification or some other purpose but is not undertaking a degree program. Nondegree admission is selective. Not more than six credit hours of graduate credit earned under nondegree status may be applied toward an advanced degree in Dedman College.

No student is allowed to enroll unless notified of admission by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies.

Admission Requirements

Applicants holding the bachelor’s degree from an institution of standard collegiate rank, recognized by the accrediting agencies in whose jurisdiction the college is located, may apply for admission to graduate studies. Graduates of colleges not fully recognized will be treated as special cases and required to produce evidence attesting to the quality of their programs. Any student whose bachelor’s degree is not equivalent to the comparable baccalaureate degree from Southern Methodist University may be required to take sufficient additional work to make up the deficiency. All applicants must have adequate subject preparation in the chosen major field, normally an overall grade point average of 3.000 (on a 4.000 scale) and a satisfactory score on the GRE graduate school admission test.

International Students

Applicants must meet the University’s admissions requirements for English language proficiency. Applicants who do not speak English as their native language are required to supply scores on the TOEFL English language proficiency test or the IELTS English competency test. Unless specified otherwise by a program or department, applicants should consult the Office of Admission for more information on the minimum test scores required for admission: www.smu.edu/Admission/Apply/FirstYearInternational/AdmissionRequirements.This requirement is waived for students who have received undergraduate degrees from an English-language institution located in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa. The Test of Spoken English or equivalent is required for teaching assistants.

Applicants who have completed studies at and received diplomas or professional titles from institutions outside the United States should ordinarily have completed 16 years of study: 12 years at the elementary and secondary school level and four years at the university level. Eligibility is judged by grades (marks), class obtained or rank achieved in class. Evidence of class placement therefore should be specifically set forth in the official records submitted.

Applicants holding bachelor’s degrees from foreign universities should not assume that these degrees will be automatically accepted in U.S. universities. Applicants who have achieved first or high second class from universities that confer classes based on grades (marks) will be preferred. Applicants holding bachelor’s degrees with honors or master’s degrees have a better chance of being accepted in U.S. universities. Also, decisions will be based on the academic standing of the institutions from which the applicant has graduated. Professional diplomas and higher certificates from technical or vocational schools are normally not considered as equivalent to a bachelor’s degree. Departments have the option of making authentication of transcripts part of the process of offering assistantships to international students.

Application Procedure

The online application for Dedman college graduate degrees can be accessed at gradadmission.smu.edu/apply/.

For more information, students should contact smugrad@smu.edu. A complete application should include the following:

1. The online application.
2. An official transcript for all schoolwork after high school.
3. The application fee of $75 collected online.
4. Three letters of recommendation submitted online.
5. GRE graduate school admission test scores submitted electronically.
6. TOEFL English language proficiency test scores for international applicants.
7. Writing samples required for English, history and religious studies programs.

Application Deadlines

Due to the extra time necessary for visa processing, international applicants are advised to have their online application completed at least two months before the final deadlines. Students who apply for departmental assistantships should submit their applications by the priority deadline as noted.

The online application for the Master of Science in the Data Science program can be accessed at apply.datascience.smu.edu.  Application deadlines are available at datascience.smu.edu. 

McNair Scholars Program

SMU encourages McNair Scholars to apply for graduate studies in Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences by waiving their application fee. In addition, 10 tuition fee waivers (five through Dedman College and five through the Lyle School of Engineering) are designated for admitted McNair Scholars applicants. SMU supports the aims of this program – to identify and mentor undergraduates as they prepare for graduate school – and would like to participate in helping students realize their goals. McNair Scholars should identify themselves as such on their application. Questions can be directed to smugrad@smu.edu.

Institute for Recruitment of Teachers Applicants

SMU provides an application fee waiver for IRT applicants and invites applications to Dedman College’s graduate programs. Departments award assistantships based on the merits of the applicant and the limits of the budget.