Interdisciplinary, human-centered education for the twenty-first century.

Graduate liberal studies education at SMU Simmons offers a wide range of interdisciplinary, skills-based master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs for professionals, community leaders, and individuals. You can pursue your lifelong intellectual passion, enhance your leadership contributions to your profession, or transform a career. At SMU Simmons, we believe that everyone benefits from building vital skills and examining the human condition from a variety of perspectives in order to meet the problems of the 21st century. Our interdisciplinary and professional framework will help you do just that.

SMU offers three graduate programs:

Doctor of Liberal Studies

Prospective Students

The Doctor of Liberal Studies (D.L.S.) degree is designed for adult learners who want to challenge themselves with rigorous advanced study on a part- or full-time basis in a variety of topics with the goal of benefitting their workplace, professions and society.

Career and Personal Benefits

Under the guidance of senior faculty, DLS students engage in focused scholarly reading and research on an interdisciplinary topic or issue, culminating in a doctoral thesis that demonstrates interdisciplinary analysis, synthesis, and interpretation.

Professor discussing art at Meadows Museum

Program Details

Master of Liberal Studies

Prospective Students

The pursuit of a human-centered, interdisciplinary, Master of Liberal Studies degree from SMU fosters growth for professional and community leaders. Students can pursue their lifelong intellectual passions and enhance their leadership contributions to their professions and the world.

Career and Personal Benefits

Designed to offer flexibility to students in planning their master’s level study, MLS coursework encourages creative and critical thinking by taking courses in humanities, organizational dynamics, social justice, arts, and culture. Students benefit from building vital skills and examining the human condition from a variety of perspectives in order to meet the problems of the 21st century.

Two students at the top of the steps from Dallas Hall

Program Details

Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS)

Prospective Students

This program is designed for students with a Master's degree who wish to pursue advanced graduate work in a focal area of interdisciplinary study.

Career and Personal Benefits

The Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study serves to provide adults the opportunity to pursue advanced study in the liberal arts in a focused and disciplined manner. The program encourages in-depth study of a core topic, while drawing upon various disciplines to provide a broad understanding of the subject.

Simmons Assistant Professor Denisa Gandara

Program Details