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2 Dallas universities earn top spots in U.S. News' rankings for 2025

SMU is the No. 5 best university in Texas for 2025, according to U.S. News.

SMU/Facebook

Two prestigious Dallas universities – Southern Methodist University and The University of Texas at Dallas – have come out on top among the best universities in Texas for 2025, according to U.S. News and World Report's just-released list of the Best Colleges for 2025.

Southern Methodist University claimed No. 5 in Texas, and ranked No. 91 nationally in a two-spot slip from last year's ranking. The private institution has a 90 percent first-year retention rate, and an "actual" graduation rate of 83 percent. SMU costs $60,709 in tuition and fees for students each year, and according to the school's profile, it has an acceptance rate of 61 percent.

In April, SMU's graduate business school ranked No. 3 in U.S. News' ranking of the best graduate schools in Texas, with the graduate education school and the Dedman School of Law also earning No. 3 rankings in their respective categories.

SMU very recently topped the charts as the No. 1 Christian college in America in Niche's new rankings for 2025.

In a glowing review of the university, one former student said SMU is an "academically solid" school for eager learners.

"I had a very meaningfully academic experience," the reviewer wrote. "Yes, there is fun and games, but one obtains a very solid education and can stand shoulder to shoulder in one's field with graduates from any school."

SMU's cross-Metroplex rival, Texas Christian University, ranked No. 6 in Texas and No. 105 nationally for 2025.

University of Texas at Dallas students have new reason to be proud of their school. Facebook/UT Dallas

Just behind TCU, Richardson's University of Texas at Dallas placed No. 7 in the Texas rankings, and moved up six spots to claim No. 109 nationally. The public university costs $14,644 in tuition and fees for in-state students, and has an acceptance rate of 65 percent. UTD has a first-year retention rate of 88 percent, and a 75 percent "actual" graduation rate.

U.S. News' top 10 best colleges in Texas in 2025 are:

No. 1 – Rice University, Houston
No. 2 – University of Texas at Austin
No. 3 – Texas A&M University, College Station
No. 4 – Baylor University, Waco
No. 5 – Southern Methodist University, Dallas
No. 6 – Texas Christian University, Fort Worth
No. 7 – The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson
No. 8 – University of Houston
No. 9 – University of St. Thomas, Houston
No. 10 – Texas Tech University, Lubbock

The full rankings can be found on usnews.com.

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Closure news

Neiman Marcus flagship store in downtown Dallas to close for good

Neiman Marcus

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The iconic downtown Dallas location of luxury department store Neiman Marcus, at 1618 Main St., will close for good, the company says.

In a statement to media, parent company Saks Global said it planned to close the store on September 30, 2026 and focus on its NorthPark Center location in Dallas.

"As we continue to take steps to secure a strong future for Neiman Marcus, our optimized store footprint is aimed at aligning our go-forward presence with customer demand and preferences. After a thorough evaluation, we have made the difficult decision to close the Neiman Marcus Downtown Dallas store on September 30, 2026, and concentrate our resources where our customers prefer to shop.

"Dallas remains an incredibly important market for the Neiman Marcus brand, and our customers in the city and across the suburbs consistently choose to shop at our NorthPark location. We are committed to serving our loyal Dallas customers at NorthPark, where we plan to infuse elements celebrating the Downtown store’s rich history," the statement read.

The store has been open since 1914 and served as a bedrock for downtown Dallas.

The definitive closure announcement, first reported by The Dallas Morning News, ends a months-long saga of will-they-won't-they and back-and-forth with the city of Dallas. There have been many efforts to keep the longtime store open.

To recap: In mid-February 2025, Saks Global said they were closing the 100-year-old store after a dispute with the landlord. City leaders rallied to keep it open. It worked, sort of: a landlord who owned a piece of land on which the iconic store resides agreed to donate it to the city of Dallas, so that there would be no obstacles for the store's continued operation.

But then in late February 2025, Saks Global reiterated that the Neiman Marcus Downtown Dallas store would definitely close on March 31, 2025. More rallying happened.

In late March 2025, days before it was to have closed, Saks Global announced the store would remain open through the 2025 holiday season while it explored a reimagination of the location in collaboration with the City of Dallas.

In January 2026, Saks Global filed for bankruptcy, leaving the fate of all stores unclear. The more than $2 billion in debt that Saks Global amassed to acquire Neiman Marcus in 2024 helped push the company into bankruptcy court, they said. As part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, Saks Global has secured about $1.75 billion in financing to keep the company afloat and its stores open.

In announcing the bankruptcy, Saks Global said it was evaluating its store lineup “to invest resources where it has the greatest long-term potential. This approach reflects an effort to focus the business in areas where [our] luxury retail brands are best positioned for sustainable growth.”

Saks Global announced that the Neiman Marcus store at The Shops at Willow Bend in Plano would close in January 2027 after 25 years. According to Saks Global, there are no plans to replace or relocate the store.

The closures of Downtown and Willow Bend leave Neiman Marcus with two DFW-area locations: NorthPark Center, and the Shops at Clearfork in Fort Worth.

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Teresa Gubbins and John Egan contributed to this story.

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