Wes Waggoner said his experience at TCU will help him after he leaves cowtown to lead SMU's admission staff.

Waggoner is currently TCU's Associate Dean of Admission but will pony up on Oct. 17.  

Waggoner was recently named SMU's new dean of undergraduate admission, according to a press release from SMU's News and Communications Department.

At SMU he will oversee all undergraduate admission, including first-year, transfer and international students. Waggoner said he would lead SMU’s undergraduate admissions to help them achieve the success they want to achieve. Helping SMU reach their goals will be a part of the job, Waggoner said.
Waggoner said he had worked for TCU Admissions for 6-and-a-half years.

Waggoner said the move was bittersweet. “I’m certainly not excited to leave such a great place. I love TCU, but at the same time it’s an amazing opportunity for someone in the field of admissions.”

The experience gained from TCU will help me at SMU, he said. Experiences build on one another and by gaining more responsibility you get better at your job, he said. TCU is a complex and dynamic institution similar to SMU, Waggoner said.

“I’m just taking advantage of learning more about SMU and their goals, the vision that they have as well as their culture.” Waggoner said he has also been reading about SMU and interacting with their staff.

SMU has an early action program and we will lead the first round of applications, he said. 

The hiring process was months long and Dean of TCU Admissions Ray Brown was informed the whole time, he said. The Admissions staff was supportive professionally but would have loved for me to stay, he said.

Waggoner will still be a Frog for the game against TCU this weekend. He said there was no safe answer on his support at this week’s TCU versus SMU football game. “I’m going to enjoy a great game.”