Dean's Welcome

We are absolutely delighted to introduce you to our wonderful school and the many opportunities we provide to help you build a satisfying career in the law.

Connections from the start. We are excited about our Inns of Court program sponsored by Haynes and Boone. This program enhances the SMU first-year experience. Each student is part of an Inn—a small group of approximately 30 students, plus faculty, upper level students, and attorney mentors—that will be a key part of the entire first year experience. Inns will offer social and networking events along with career advising and meaningful service projects. You will also be forming connections with a truly extraordinary faculty – a remarkable group of teacher-scholars who offer a rich and innovative curriculum and are committed to your academic and professional success.

Connections to the legal community. Our students have unique access to SMU’s unparalleled connections to our thriving legal and business community. Our innovative “flash mentorship” program called the Mustang Exchange is one of the first of its kind in the nation—pairing students with different mentors throughout the year in one-on-one conversations including career advisory meetings, mock interviews, and job shadowing experiences. Throughout your time in law school, you will work closely with our dedicated Career Services team, which provides individualized counseling and coaching to students to help you achieve your professional goals. After graduation, our students can take advantage of our strong alumni network by joining the Mustang Bar Law Alumni Association, with its networking opportunities like happy hours, tailgates, CLE events, and prominent lectures.

Connections to the real world. Our extensive experiential learning opportunities are turning the Dallas-Fort Worth area into a living laboratory for our students. Our flourishing clinical program offers 11 clinics to serve the public—making a real difference to our students and their clients. The law school also has three academic centers, providing an interdisciplinary platform for educational programming, to facilitate academic research, and to provide educational opportunities that engage students and the academic and business/legal communities. Programs like our thriving Corporate Counsel Externship Program (placing students in house with companies like AT&T and Hewlett Packard), our robust Federal Judicial Externship Program (placing students in the courthouse with judges), and our Government and Public Externship Program (placing students in non-profit and government legal departments) give hands-on lessons about law in the real world.

Dallas! Your legal education will take place in Dallas—a booming city full of friendly people and amazing professional opportunities. Dallas is growing in leaps and bounds, with a thriving job market and high quality of life. It’s a great place to live, go to school and build a career.

I hope you will visit us and experience our school in a way that words and pictures can only suggest. We look forward to getting to know you

Jason P. Nance

Judge James Noel Dean and Professor of Law