As graduate dean, I am hopeful that you will seriously consider Baylor as a place for advanced study. Baylor offers much that is unique. Some of the differences are obvious while others, like the carillon that fills my office with music on crisp fall days when my windows are open to the quadrangle, are more subtle.

They are warm and gentle tones, yet in a bustling secularized world, the bell of Baylor's carillon strike a distinctive chord. "Tallis' Canon" floats note by note across the century-old, 432 acre campus. In the noble history of universitas, it is an echoing sound. Twelfth century students rushing to morning classes at Oxford heard similar bells from the church of St. Mary's where their professors lectured.

The bells serve as a reminder of one of Baylor's great distinctions. Baylor University is one of the largest Christian universities in the world. Within this Christian tradition emerges an extraordinary diversity of thought, a vital intellectual pursuit, an undying thirst for knowledge that extends into every classroom, every office, every inch of the campus. That freedom of exploration is the touchstone of all great universities. It is the hallmark of Baylor. Should you choose to join us, you will learn alongside world-class faculty who enjoy an atmosphere in which research, teamwork, and faith are valued and your own personal contribution is noted.

Larry Lyon, Ph.D.
Dean of the Graduate School