U.S. Armed Forces members and veterans interested in earning an MBA can now receive a full scholarship at SMU Cox School of Business. The Cox School is now able to increase its Yellow Ribbon funding, resulting in enough financial support to fully cover tuition and fees for active duty military and veterans who are admitted into Cox MBA and specialized masterʼs programs.

“We’re proud to be able to increase opportunities for our military service providers,” says Cox School of Business Dean Matthew B. Myers, a veteran who understands firsthand the difference this benefit can make. After he was a medic in the U.S. Army Airborne from 1979 to 1982, the GI Bill helped Myers cover his college costs when he returned from military duty.

“Removing potential cost barriers to a graduate business education is one way we can show our appreciation for the men and women who’ve dedicated at least part of their lives to answering our country’s call,” Myers says. “It is our privilege to provide them the education they need to achieve further success in their current and/or post-military careers.”

The Cox School increased it’s Yellow Ribbon funding from $7,500 a year per eligible student to $15,000. When matched by the Veterans Administration, the financial support fully covers tuition, general student fees, a health center fee and a Cox program fee for the Full-Time MBA, Professional MBA, One-Year MBA and Online MBA. The Executive MBA program, which targets seasoned business leaders, is 83% covered by Yellow Ribbon and GI Bill funding. GI Bill students can expect an estimated out-of-pocket cost of $21,000, which can be reduced with additional scholarship funding.

The Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program (Yellow Ribbon Program) is a provision of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008. Active duty military and veterans interested in learning more about expanded scholarship duties for Cox School graduate programs may email mbainfo@smu.edu or call 214-768-4648. Applications for the 2022 program are now being accepted.


Dean Matt Myers and Peyton Dekker, MBA ’22, president of Cox Veterans in Business, unveil the prototype for the new plaque honoring the men and women who served in the U.S. Armed Forces during the global war on terrorism.

Veterans Day: New Plaque Will be Part of Veterans Garden

To commemorate Veterans Day on Nov. 11, the U.S. Military Veterans of SMU and the Cox School’s Veterans in Business Club honored fellow SMU students, alumni, faculty and staff who served in the global war on terrorism. In a special ceremony, Cox Veterans in Business President Peyton Dekker, MBA ʼ22, and Cox Dean Matt Myers, faculty adviser to SMU Military Veterans, unveiled the prototype for a specially commissioned plaque dedicated to veterans of the war on terrorism. Once complete, the plaque will have a place of honor in the Rock Garden, between the Cox School and the Hughes-Trigg Student Center, which will now be known as the SMU Veterans’ Garden.

The plaque was made possible through the sponsorship of 7-Eleven and company President and CEO Joe DePinto, who is also a military veteran. Cox Professor of Practice Jason Galui, a former Army lieutenant colonel, was keynote speaker.