In 1975, the existing academic programs were consolidated into the Schools of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Management, and Human Development, and the Schools of Arts and Humanities, General Studies, and Social Sciences were opened, each creating graduate programs. The Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science was authorized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in 1986. An Act of the 71st Texas Legislature directed The University of Texas at Dallas to admit Freshmen and Sophomore students beginning in the Fall 1990 semester, allowing the university to provide educational opportunities to students at all academic levels. Since the establishment of SCAS, a distinguished and well-recognized program of research has existed on the campus. The nature of this research has ranged widely, from the instrumentation for lunar and planetary exploration to problems in the biochemical repair of animal cells, to the neurological basis of deafness.
Research continues to represent a major thrust of the university.