SMU Continuing and Professional Education (CAPE) offers courses available to anyone wanting to advance in their career, prepare for a certification exam, transition into a new career or simply augment their personal skills. Our professional education courses are specifically designed for working adults, with convenient scheduling and registration.
Enrollment requirements for continuing education programs vary, so please read the prerequisites for the specific course or program in which you plan to enroll. Generally, transcripts or SAT scores are not required, though some certification programs may have particular requirements or credentials.
On average, no. Some courses may require a certain level of education or prior training in order to enroll. Be sure to read the prerequisites listed for a course.
No. You are only considered a graduate of SMU when you earn an academic degree from a degree-granting unit or department. However, you can earn a certificate from SMU and have the benefit of an educational experience from a highly reputable institution.
Certificate programs generally award certificates denoting successful completion of the program to participants, but do not give university credit.
Certification programs are designed to provide training to individuals who are required to have and maintain specific levels of knowledge and skills in their job categories, often as a legal requirement to perform their duties. Certification programs may carry credits and/or may be prerequisites for licensure.
Yes, veterans and active military can use their GI Bill® benefits for continuing education programs. Benefits and processes vary according to funding available. Getting started is easy; see our Veterans page or contact Robert Hurst at 214-768-1104 or rhurst@smu.edu.
When a course is listed as “online” or “web-based,” it generally means it is taught entirely online. Hybrid learning, sometimes called “blended learning,” mixes classroom and online instruction.
We recommend that all participants bring laptops, if they want to have computer access. Instructions for connecting to the free, on-campus wireless network will be emailed to you prior to your arrival. International participants should bring the appropriate adaptors in order to plug in their laptops. The outlets are three-pronged and run on AC 110v.
Payment plans are available for a limited number of certificate programs, please check the program details for the program your are interested for more information.
Absolutely! To hold a class at an off-site location, please contact Terry Teague at tlteague@smu.edu.
Students are encouraged to register early to secure a place in the course(s) of their choice. Students may enroll online or by phone at 214-768-2273.
You will receive enrollment confirmation and course reminders via email for all SMU CAPE courses. In addition, a parking pass with additional details and directions will be sent to all attendees.
Parking in an undesignated parking area may result in a parking fine. Click here for more information about campus parking.
Parking in an undesignated parking area may result in a parking fine. Click here for more information about campus parking.
Most classes are held on SMU's main campus or East campus in Dallas. Occasionally, courses meet off campus at locations relevant to the course topics. These locations are detailed in the online catalogs and on student confirmation emails once a student has enrolled in a course.
Classroom assignments are sent to registered students by email. You may also log in to the online registration system to view registration and location information.
Courses are available to students 18 years old and older. Due to liability issues, we are unable to offer these courses to students younger than 18 years.
Most courses have no prerequisites. Should a course require experience in a certain field or enrollment in a previous class, this will be clearly marked in the online course catalog.
For most professional courses, including the Certified Financial Planning Certificate Program and SMU Test Prep courses, attendance is taken and certificates of completion are issued.
For more information, or to request a record of attendance, please contact our office in advance of your course by calling 214-768-2273.
For more information, or to request a record of attendance, please contact our office in advance of your course by calling 214-768-2273.
If you must withdraw from the certificate program, please notify us in writing (via email: smupro@smu.edu or fax 214-768-1071) prior to the start of the program. If a withdrawal request is received in writing more than three (3) full business days prior to the start date of the first course, students may receive a refund, minus a $250 processing fee.
SMU CAPE professional certificate enrollment is final as of three (3) business days prior to the start date of the first course. After that date, you will not receive a refund if you withdraw or quit the course before completion. We do not provide prorated refunds or credits for incomplete or partial certificate program completion. Students enrolled in a certificate program may have the option to transfer to another cohort; this option is outlined in the student terms and conditions of each program, pending space availability and time remaining to successfully complete the program. If withdrawing prior to program start date, students may also put funds in escrow for up to 12 months for use by themselves or someone else.
Failure to attend class does not constitute withdrawal.
All refunds will be made in the form of the original payment. Please allow up to six weeks to receive check refunds.
Full details are available on the certificate application.
If you must withdraw from the certificate program, please notify us in writing (via email: smupro@smu.edu or fax 214-768-1071) prior to the start of the program. If a withdrawal request is received in writing more than three (3) full business days prior to the start date of the first course, students may receive a refund, minus a $250 processing fee.
SMU CAPE professional certificate enrollment is final as of three (3) business days prior to the start date of the first course. After that date, you will not receive a refund if you withdraw or quit the course before completion. We do not provide prorated refunds or credits for incomplete or partial certificate program completion. Students enrolled in a certificate program may have the option to transfer to another cohort; this option is outlined in the student terms and conditions of each program, pending space availability and time remaining to successfully complete the program. If withdrawing prior to program start date, students may also put funds in escrow for up to 12 months for use by themselves or someone else.
Failure to attend class does not constitute withdrawal.
All refunds will be made in the form of the original payment. Please allow up to six weeks to receive check refunds.
Full details are available on the certificate application.
While rare, SMU CAPE reserves the right to cancel a course due to insufficient enrollment. Should SMU CAPE cancel a course, a full refund will be granted to enrollees. Every effort is made to notify students of a course cancellation in advance, but often the majority of a course's enrollments are received within a few days of its start date. Therefore, a course that is very close to its minimum enrollment may not be cancelled until one day prior to its start date in an effort to give the course every opportunity to achieve the necessary enrollment. Students are encouraged to register early to secure a place in the courses of their choice and to help ensure the course's success.
Classes may also be cancelled due to inclement weather. For more information on SMU's inclement weather policy, please click here.
If your company is paying for your tuition, please contact a program advisor to receive a third-party billing form and application. Indicate whether your company is paying for the application fee, and then submit both your application and the third-party billing form simultaneously. You will not be enrolled in the course until we receive the approved line-of-credit form with the necessary signatures.
A student may choose to be added to the waitlist, free of charge, for any course that has already reached its maximum enrollment. If space becomes available in the course, or if a new section of the course is added to the schedule, those on the waitlist will be notified in the order in which they were listed. Students on the waitlist are not obligated to register if/when a space becomes available. We encourage students to add their names to the waitlist for courses they are interested in, since this can be a factor in whether or not new sections of the course are added to the schedule.
SMU students, alumni, faculty/staff, veterans and employees of nonprofit organizations receive a 10% discount off our courses. If you qualify for a discount, contact the SMU CAPE office at 214-768-2273. Discounts are applied to the standard tuition rate.
Certain programs have been approved by the VA for use with the GI Bill®. See Veterans page for more details.
Select corporate and group rates are available; contact a program advisor for more details.
If you qualify for more than one special rate, you will be given the one with the most savings.
No. Students must register and pay before attending a course. Instructors cannot accept registration fees.
Use the student portal login page to request your user ID and/or password. Click Forgot User Name or Forgot Password to receive an email about your user name or to reset your password.
Many SMU CAPE courses can be used for contact hours or Continuing Educations Units (CEUs). Upon request, we can verify student enrollment and hours associated with a course. It is the student’s responsibility to share a copy of the course description with a professional organization prior to enrollment to see if the content qualifies for professional development CEUs in their field. Attendance is not typically taken and cannot be verified without advance notification to the instructor.
All SMU CAPE courses are noncredit. Upon request, SMU CAPE offers transcripts for all of our certificate programs. Transcripts cost $10 each. Please call the SMU CAPE office at 214-768-2273 for assistance with this request and to make your payment via a MasterCard, Visa, American Express or Discover. Transcripts are processed within two business days of your paid request.
You are welcome to join undergraduate tours, which are designed for prospective undergraduates. You can find more information here.
If you'd like to propose a course idea or would like to teach a class, please contact SMU to learn about the process.