SMU Office of Research and Graduate Studies

Research

Based on the most recent Carnegie Foundation classifications, Southern Methodist University (SMU) belongs to the class of Doctoral/Research Universities - Extensive, institutions which graduate more than 50 doctoral candidates in at least 15 disciplines per year. Unlike many Research Universities, doctoral programs are offered only in a selected number of disciplines. Nevertheless, research productivity is required of faculty members in all disciplines. Institutional commitment is for excellence in both teaching and research. About 520 full-time faculty members generate more than 50 books and 600 journal articles per year.

The volume of sponsored research per year is in the range of $10 to $12 million in agency funds. During 2001-2002, 70 faculty and staff investigators received 117 awards for a total volume of $11.01 million. Needless to say, the bulk of sponsored research is in the disciplines of science and engineering.

The objective of this section is to provide an overview and some samples of ongoing research at SMU. This is done in four parts.

Part 1: SMU Research. This is a research magazine published annually by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies and produced by the Office of Public Affairs. It includes some feature articles, vignettes of faculty activity, selected faculty recognition and awards, and a summary of sponsored research activity.

Part 2: Research Administration. Information on potential sources of external funding; administration of proposal submission and of grants and contracts for research and other sponsored projects.

Part 3: Summary of Funding for Research and Sponsored Projects. This is an annual report compiled by the Director of Research Administration and includes summary statistics on awards and expenditures as well as a listing of awards received by the university.

Part 4: Faculty Research Interests (by department). In this portion Web users are directed to the location where they can find information on the research interests of the faculty by department.

Part 5: Faculty Research Interests (by keyword). In this portion Web users are directed to the location where they can find information on the research interests of the faculty by keyword.