[2] He attended North Dallas High School and graduated as valedictorian in 1944,[2] upon which he joined the United States Navy.
[2] Whilst serving as a sailor during the day, he received three degrees from the University of Texas at Austin, in engineering, economics, and law.
[1][2][4][5] After he left duty, he earned a law degree from Southern Methodist University in 1953, specializing in oil, gas, and taxation.
[2] He became the Entrepreneur of the Year in 1976 from the Cox School of Business at SMU, Dallas Humanitarian of the Year in 1980, Texas Business Hall of Fame in 1987, and the Horatio Alger Award from the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans in 1989.
[7][9][11] He also donated to Sandhills Community College in Pinehurst, North Carolina, where the Robert H. Dedman Center for Business Leadership is named for him.
[16] In 2001, the year before he died, Dedman made the Forbes list of America's 400 wealthiest individuals with a net worth of $1.2 billion.