Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger ProgramsPrivate nonprofitHSI

Concordia University - Chicago

River Forest, Illinois·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Great Lakes·cuchicago.edu
6-yr Graduation
36%
-25.5pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Total enrollment
4,770
peer median 4,276
Avg net price
$18,436
-$5.7k vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
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AboutAdmissionsOutcomesProgram outcomesAccreditationCostFederal aidLoan defaultsAcademic programsEnrollment trendsAthleticsCampus safetyFacultyPeersIR OfficeDocumentsAlumni

About

Concordia University Chicago is a private university in River Forest, Illinois, United States. Formerly a college exclusively for educating teachers for parochial schools, Concordia-Chicago now offers more than 100 undergraduate and graduate degree programs and enrolls more than 5,000 students. The university is a member of the Concordia University System, a nationwide network of colleges and universities affiliated with the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS).

Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

IPEDS
Applied
4,200
4,200 candidates competed
Admitted
3,897
92.8% acceptance rate
Enrolled
300
7.7% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

IPEDS
Overall completion
36%-25.5pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
4-year graduation
29%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
36%
Full-time retention
61%

Pell equity

14.6pp gap
Pell recipients
30%65 of 218
Non-Pell (all)
45%79 of 177
Subsidized loan, no Pell
33%26 of 80
No Federal Aid
55%53 of 97

Non-Pell students graduate at a 14.6-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Source: IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) — Pell/SSL cohort, 2024 cohort.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

FVT/GE

Of 88 Title IV programs, 23 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 65 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
88
Passing
23
26.1% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

88programs
  • Passing23 · 26.1%
  • No Data65 · 73.9%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
3
Safe
20
No data
65

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

23
Human Services General
Master's Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
+23.0%
$56,757 vs $46,158
Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language
Master's Degree · Education
+23.1%
$57,111 vs $46,391
Communication and Media Studies
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+23.7%
$43,071 vs $34,808
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Master's Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+28.6%
$66,304 vs $51,545
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+29.7%
$82,060 vs $63,250
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
+30.8%
$45,532 vs $34,808
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Subject Areas
Master's Degree · Education
+32.1%
$61,264 vs $46,391
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+33.8%
$46,590 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

20
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
74%
$51,102 debt · $69,536 earn
Human Services General
Master's Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
64%
$36,555 debt · $56,757 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
56%
$25,991 debt · $46,590 earn
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
49%
$41,678 debt · $84,318 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Subject Areas
Bachelor Degree · Education
49%
$27,000 debt · $55,212 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
48%
$21,714 debt · $45,532 earn
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Bachelor Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
45%
$25,000 debt · $55,309 earn
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
40%
$32,720 debt · $82,060 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

DAPIP
AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1950Next review Aug 2034

Programmatic accreditations · 2

Action history · 3

  1. Jun 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  2. May 2015Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  3. Aug 2014Change in Agency recognition
    National Association of Schools of Music, Commission on Accreditation · Music (MUS) - Institutions and units within institutions offering degree-granting and/or non-degree-granting programs

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

College Scorecard

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$16,795
$30–48k$16,397
$48–75k$15,768
$75–110k$20,046
$110k+$23,907

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price (private)
$18,436
-$5,749vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs median $24,185
Federal loans
56.9%
In-state tuition
$37,488
Out-of-state
$37,488

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

Federal Student Aid

In AY 2024–25, 855 students received $4.9M in Pell grants, alongside $28.9M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
855
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$4.9M
$4,920,253 total
Direct Loans
$28.9M
2,636 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

1k
’20
1k
’21
1k
’22
1k
’23
1k
’24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$2.7M
652 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$2.7M
649 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$19.2M
1,112 loan awards
Parent PLUS$1.2M
92 loan awards
Grad PLUS$3.1M
131 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Cohort Default Rate

Of 1,644 borrowers who entered repayment, 15 (0.9%) defaulted within three years — below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.9%
-1.4pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,644
Defaulted
15
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
4.6%
2017
5.1%
2018
3.1%
2019
0.9%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Concordia University-Chicago

Top program areas ranked by completions.

IPEDS
Distinct CIP programs80
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,327 total completions
01Education
62847.3%
02Parks/Recreation
38629.1%
03Business
20415.4%
04Psychology
302.3%
05Health Professions
272.0%
06Social Sciences
120.9%
07Computer Sciences
120.9%
08Multi/Interdisciplinary
120.9%
09Theology
80.6%
10Biological Sciences
80.6%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

IPEDS
Fall total
4,770
12-mo unduplicated
6,199
Undergraduate
1,592
Graduate
4,607

Gender split

Men
37%2,308
Women
63%3,891

Race / ethnicity composition

White
40.1%
Hispanic
37.9%
Black
13.2%
Two or more
4.0%
Asian
2.0%
Unknown
1.4%
Non-resident
1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.2%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

EADA
Athletes
396
246 M · 150 W
Women athletes
37.9%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$4.1M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$15K
$29K
Head-coach salaries
$46K
$41K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 11

Football
84 M · —
$423K
Soccer
39 M · 30 W
$264K
Track and Field (Outdoor)
33 M · 24 W
$123K
Track and Field (Indoor)
33 M · 24 W
$123K
Baseball
42 M · —
$435K
Basketball
26 M · 13 W
$364K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Clery Act
Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
1.38
7 offenses · 5,066 students

3-year trend

2.792 yrs ago0.931 yr ago1.38Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
29
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
5
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
3
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Burglary
3
Aggravated assault
2
Rape
1
Fondling
1

By location

7total
  • On campus7

Includes 3 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
0
Dating violence
1
Stalking
1 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • Race2
  • Gender1

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons03
Drugs018
Liquor012

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

IPEDS
Student-to-faculty
13.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
222

Concordia University-Chicago vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Concordia University-Chicago selected for federal comparison reporting.

IPEDS
GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectConcordia University-Chicago
36%—4,770$18,436Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Anderson University
66%54.7%4,710$23,544Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Bentley University
87%45.1%5,333$37,930Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Bryant University
80%65.5%3,636$41,219Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
California Lutheran University
70%75.7%3,351$30,109Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Carroll University
71%66.8%3,138$15,193Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Columbia College
43%—5,689$22,715Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Davenport University
55%97.8%4,815$17,707Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Elmhurst University
70%73.6%3,997$24,185Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Endicott College
75%71.2%4,394$40,654Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Fairleigh Dickinson University-Metropolitan Campus
54%90.7%8,045$15,404Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Golden Gate University
——3,098$8,732Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Hawaii Pacific University
35%85.9%4,921$29,657Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Herzing University-Madison
22%94.3%5,274$22,327Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Houston Christian University
49%84.4%4,276$20,629Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Iona University
56%86.9%3,958$29,188Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Jacksonville University
51%56.9%4,247$25,180Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Johnson & Wales University-Providence
50%88.4%4,303$31,027Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Lynn University
52%73.5%3,514$44,089Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Monmouth University
72%89.0%4,767$30,988Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Niagara University
74%87.4%4,033$17,248Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Norwich University
60%74.4%3,149$22,257Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Point Loma Nazarene University
77%83.7%4,757$38,729Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Providence College
86%50.9%4,666$48,523Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Rider University
61%78.6%4,003$24,792Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
St. Joseph's University-New York
69%72.0%3,899$19,035Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Stetson University
62%71.6%3,775$19,372Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
University of Scranton
80%81.2%4,724$32,568Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Utica University
56%92.0%3,627$19,108Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Peer group median62%77.2%4,276$24,185

Institutions like Concordia University-Chicago

Explore the federal data for institutions in Concordia University-Chicago's comparison group.

IPEDS

Concordia University-Chicago Institutional Research office

The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.

Office
Office of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness
Email
Research [at] CUChicago.edu
Phone
708-209-3121
Address
Addison 160

The OIPE is responsible for providing the university with data that supports institutional planning, policy development and informed decision making to enhance institutional effectiveness; reporting complete, accurate and reliable data to internal and external constituents; serving as a comprehensive source of information about the institution; promoting student learning and assessment for continuous improvement of pedagogy, curriculum, and instruction.

Visit IR office page
Team
1 member
  • Diana DeMarco
    Associate Vice President for Institutional Planning & Effectiveness

Reports & documents (2)

Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.

Notable alumni of Concordia University-Chicago (9)

A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.

  • Bernard Bull
  • Stacy Davis Gates
  • Barry Davis
    Baseball
  • Tony Harper
    Football
  • Scot Kerns
  • Paul Manz
  • Tom Sallay
  • Carl Schalk
  • Mark Warkentien

Frequently asked questions about Concordia University-Chicago

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Concordia University-Chicago.

What is the graduation rate at Concordia University-Chicago?

Concordia University-Chicago reports a 6-year graduation rate of 36% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Concordia University-Chicago?

Concordia University-Chicago reports a total enrollment of 4,770 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Concordia University-Chicago?

The average net price at Concordia University-Chicago is $18,436 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Concordia University-Chicago?

Concordia University-Chicago's yield rate is 7.7%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Concordia University-Chicago located?

Concordia University-Chicago is located in River Forest, Illinois 60305-1499.

Who runs Institutional Research at Concordia University-Chicago?

Concordia University-Chicago's IR work is done by the Office of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness.

About the data on this page

Every figure comes from an official federal or public source. Here is each one and the release it is currently on.

IPEDS2025 provisional data (Fall 2025–26 release, July 28, 2026)
Enrollment, completions, graduation rates, tuition, financial aid, staffing, and finance for every U.S. institution in federal student aid programs.
National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education
College ScorecardJune 10, 2026 release (merged 2025–26 files)
Institution and field-of-study costs, graduate earnings, debt, completion, and admissions outcomes compiled from federal aid records, tax data, and IPEDS.
U.S. Department of Education
FVT/GE program performanceProvisional preview, May 18, 2026 release
Program-level debt-to-earnings and earnings-premium measures behind the FVT/GE and STATS accountability frameworks.
U.S. Department of Education
DAPIP accreditationContinuously refreshed
Accreditation status for institutions and programs, reported by recognized accrediting agencies.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education
Federal Pell Grant volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
Pell Grant recipient counts, award amounts, and disbursements by institution and award year.
U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid
Federal student loan volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
Federal Direct Loan recipient counts and disbursement volume by institution and award year.
U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid
Cohort Default RatesFY 2022 official rates
Institution-level federal student loan default rates, measuring borrowers who default within three years of entering repayment.
U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid
Equity in Athletics (EADA)Academic year 2024–25
Athletics participation, coaching, revenues, and expenses by sport and gender for Title IV institutions.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education
Campus Safety & SecurityData through reporting year 2024
Criminal offenses, arrests, disciplinary actions, VAWA offenses, and fire statistics reported by campus under the Clery Act.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education
Last reviewed July 2026All data sources & release dates →

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