Frequently Asked Questions

Most SMU courses will be offered in-person, on campus, but some classes will follow a hybrid model, providing a virtual, off-site component and staggered attendance schedules. They’ll be taught in-person as well as online simultaneously to accommodate international students facing travel restrictions or students with health conditions that may keep them from class. The classes will also be recorded to offer greater flexibility for online students who may live in dramatically different time zones, or so students can re-watch if it’s helpful.

For classes where students are participating online, all tests will be administered online so that every student’s progress is measured under the same circumstances.

A few courses, such as large lecture classes, may be online-only. Other small classes will be offered in-person, only, in spaces adequate to health and safety guidelines. Special accommodations will be made for students in the performing arts.

There are no printed versions of the Schedule of Classes available. The course offerings are available on my.SMU--Class Search https://my.smu.edu along with the web version http://www.smu.edu/registrar/index_enrollment.asp under Class Schedule Information for the designated term.

Students and alumni may request official transcripts online. Current and former students with an active my.SMU account may view unofficial transcripts through my.SMU.

Grades are entered online by instructors and are posted daily. Grades may be viewed the next day using my.SMU. Grade information is NOT given out over the phone and official grade reports are NOT mailed to the student's permanent address.

Once a student has been admitted to the University, the student will be mailed his email address and ID (under separate letters) with instructions for setting up a password.

All students are to provide the University registrar a current home and mailing address, telephone number (cell number if available), and emergency contact. All students must provide accurate information under the Profile tile in my.SMU.    

Students are asked to review their personal information prior to each enrollment period.  A task and a hold will be assigned to all students and students must complete the task before they can enroll. Once the task is complete the hold will be removed.

 

University policy requires that all students have a current home address, local address, and telephone information on file as well as a cell number, if available. Students may have other address types on file, including a Residence Address where you are currently living (street number, street name, city, state --- a P.O.Box is not valid for this address type).

 

To change a parent address, please send the updated information to records@smu.edu. Click: https://giving.smu.edu/resources/update-your-address/ for information that needs to be included.

The University Registrar is located on the ground floor of Laura Lee Blanton Student Services' Building. Office hours are 9:00a.m. to 4:00p.m., Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and 10:00a.m. to 4:00p.m. on Wednesday.

Students wanting to change their course schedules are encouraged to seek assistance from their advisor when considering dropping or adding a course. Add/Drops may be processed by using my.SMU. If a department approval is required, the student will need to go to the designated department to receive permission. The student’s ID will be entered in the appropriate class thus giving the student the ability to add that class on my.SMU.

1. Student Athletes: Must complete a drop form from the athletic department prior to dropping a course. You may obtain a drop form from your athletic academic counselor. This is to review the effects the drop might have on your athletic participation and aid, and advise you on your athletic eligibility. After you complete a drop form, the Director of Admission and Eligibility for Athletics will process the drop for you. The choice to drop a course is yours to make.

2. International Students: If a drop will take you to fewer than 12 hours, you should consult with the International Center. After consultation, the International Office must modify the minimum hours in order for international UG students to drop below 12 hours for the spring or fall term. Failure to maintain full-time hours may result in deportation.

3. Students on Merit or Need Based Financial Aid: If a drop will take you to fewer than 12 hours, you should consult with your financial aid adviser prior to attempting to drop a course. Your financial aid adviser will be able to tell you any effects the drop will have to your aid. After the consultation, you can process a drop through self-service in my.SMU should that be your decision. If you have any questions regarding this procedure or your financial aid, contact your financial aid adviser.

Students must file an Application for Candidacy to Graduate with their academic dean’s office or records office no later than the last day of the first week of the term in which they will complete all degree requirements. Applications are filed through my.SMU Self-Service by the deadline date on the Official University Calendar. If the student is working toward more than one degree objective, an ACG needs to be filed with each school of record. For example, a student working toward a BA in Dedman and a BM in Meadows needs to file an Application for Candidacy to Graduate for Dedman College and Meadows. Applications cannot be accepted after the graduation date.

Changes to school, major, minor, classification, degree, multiple curriculum, catalog years and anticipated graduation date may be made by contacting the student's academic dean.

Changes of grades, including change of the grade of I, are initiated by the course instructor and authorized by the academic chair and by the academic dean of the school in which the course was offered. If a student requests a grade change, the instructor may ask the student to provide the request as a written petition, which may become an official part of any further process at the instructor’s discretion. Changes of grades may be made only for the following authorized reasons: to clear a grade of I, to correct a processing error or to reflect a re-evaluation of the student’s original work. A change of grade will not be based on additional work options beyond those originally made available to the entire class. Changes of grades of I should be processed within a calendar year of the original grade assignment. Other changes of grades must be processed by the end of the next regular term. No grade will be changed after 12 months or after a student’s graduation, except in cases where a grade is successfully appealed – provided that written notice of appeal is given within six months following graduation – and in extenuating circumstances authorized by the academic dean and approved by the University Registrar’s Office.

Students, parents and third parties can find information at Enrollment and Degree Verifications.

New and Readmitted students begin with the Admissions Office or admitting school for matriculating/deposit/transcript clearance. Following acceptance, students are given a date to meet with their advisor.

• Undergraduate Students:

  • Reception Desk on Second Floor of Laura Lee Blanton Student Services' Building, (214) 768-2058

• Evening Degree Students:

  • Reception Desk on Second Floor of Laura Lee Blanton Student Services' Building, (214) 768-2058

• Non-Degree/Visiting Students:

  • 6410 Airline Road, (214) 768-4272

• Graduate/Professional Students:

  • Arts- 1120 Owen Arts Center, (214) 768-3765

  • Business-

    • MBA 125 Fincher, (214) 768-2630

    • EMBA 125 Fincher, (214) 768-3154

  • Dedman - 336 Dallas, (214) 768-4345

  • Engineering - 315 Caruth Hall, (214) 768-3037

  • Law - 125 Storey Hall, (214) 768-2552

  • MLA - 6410 Airline, (214) 768-4273

  • Theology - 203 Kirby Hall, (214) 768-2152

Instructions for web registration and other enrollment procedures may be found on the Registrar's Home Page at: http://www.smu.edu/registrar.

Instructions regarding withdrawal procedures are found on the Enrollment section of Registrar’s site at: http://www.smu.edu/EnrollmentServices/Registrar/Enrollment.

You may download the web form by clicking here. The audit course instructor's signature/approval is required on the form as well as the Academic Dean or Records Office, Student Financial Office, and University Registrar's Office. The auditor must pay the audit fee in the Student Financial Services' Office before attending any classes. Bring the completed form to the Enrollment Services' Service Desk, Ground Floor in the Laura Lee Blanton Student Services' Building.

Undergraduate students may transfer no more than 30 hours to SMU from accredited colleges and universities once they have matriculated at SMU. Petitions to attend another college or university must be completed and approved in advance by the chair of the department that offers the course at SMU (if the course will be used to satisfy a major or minor) as well as the student's adviser, academic records office and the Assistant Provost for General Education. Advance Approval petitions are available in the Registrar's Office Forms Library . Permission may be denied for educational reasons. Following the completion of the work, the student is responsible for having an official transcript sent directly to the SMU Admission Office, Southern Methodist University, PO Box 750181, Dallas, TX 75275-0181. Graduate/Professional students need to contact their academic dean regarding transfer credit policy.

Students may take one course per term on a pass/fail basis. The maximum total credit with a grade of Pass that may count toward a degree is 12 hours. In addition to these courses, students may take up to four additional PRWII courses beyond the courses required for their degree requirements. Only one additional PRWII course may be taken per term. These additional PRWII courses are graded on a pass/fail basis only and do not count toward the minimum hours for a student’s degree requirements or toward the one pass/fail course per term limitation. A student must indicate intention to take a course pass/fail no later than the published deadline in the academic calendar (the last day to declare pass/fail is also the drop/withdrawal deadline for the respective term) by completing the Undergraduate Pass/Fail Option Declaration Form. Students participating in SMU Study Abroad should review the deadlines under Grade Options for Courses Taken on SMU Abroad Programs. After the declaration of intent, students may not change their pass/fail declaration back to a letter grade. If a department grades a course pass/fail for all students by departmental policy, a declaration by the student is not required. A failed course cannot be repeated on a pass/ fail basis, except for those courses designated as pass/fail-only courses. Students should consult with their advisers before declaring the pass/fail option for any course, as some courses may not be taken pass/fail. In general, elective courses may be taken on a pass/fail basis. With the exception of courses only offered on a pass/fail basis, courses required to fulfill the University Curriculum may not be taken pass/fail. Courses in the academic majors and minors also are excluded; however, in some programs, courses may be taken pass/fail after the minimum program requirements have been met. SMU schools may have different pass/fail policies for major and minor courses; students should see the academic requirements in each school’s section of this catalog for information on pass/fail grading. There may also be other courses required to meet certain professional accreditation standards or entrance requirements, such as teacher preparation and pre-professional studies, that may not be taken pass/fail by a particular student. The departments or advisers concerned with these requirements will make these exclusions known to the students. Under the pass/fail option, pass (P) grades are A, B and C (including C-); failing (F) grades are D+, D, D- and F. A student who declares pass/fail is not entitled to know the regular letter grade, and a pass/fail grade cannot be changed to a regular letter grade (or vice versa) after the pass/fail grade has been assigned. The grade of P is not calculated in the GPA, although the credit hours are included in the total number of hours earned. The grade of F is calculated in the GPA.

The undergraduate and graduate catalogs can be found online here. 

1st digit	Century Mark
2nd and 3rd digit	Calendar Year
4th digit	Term Indicator 1 - January Term 2 - Spring Term 3 - May Term 4 - Summer Term 6 - August Term 7 - Fall Term

Examples:

• 0994 = Summer term, 1999
• 1066 = August term, 2006
• 1107 = Fall term, 2010
• 1111 = January term, 2011
• 1142 = Spring term, 2014
• 1203 = May term, 2020