Pepperdine University

What Pepperdine University does

Pepperdine University is a private, nonprofit Christian university headquartered in Malibu, California, founded in 1937 by George Pepperdine and affiliated historically with the Churches of Christ. It enrolls more than 7,700 students representing every US state and 90+ countries, delivered across six schools: Seaver College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences (undergraduate), Caruso School of Law, Graziadio Business School, Graduate School of Education and Psychology (GSEP), School of Public Policy, and the College of Health Science, which added a new School of Nursing in Fall 2025. The institution operates a distributed delivery model spanning the Malibu main campus, graduate campuses in Calabasas, Irvine, West Los Angeles, and Washington D.C., five international campuses in Buenos Aires, Florence, Heidelberg, London, and Vevey, and online programs via Canvas LMS.

The university's technology stack is built on third-party enterprise platforms rather than proprietary systems: Canvas LMS for online learning delivery, PeopleSoft Campus Solutions for student information, Oracle database infrastructure on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) tenancy, a WaveNet portal for the student/faculty/staff community, and an "AI at Pepperdine" initiative layer. Compliance posture includes WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility, FERPA, and Title IX. Revenue derives primarily from tuition and educational services across the six schools, supplemented by charitable gifts and donations from alumni and foundations, research grants and sponsored programs, and ancillary transaction-fee programs such as the MostFundable Companies Competition. As a private nonprofit, the university does not publicly disclose revenue figures.

Name

Pepperdine University

Legal name

Pepperdine University

Website

https://pepperdine.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1937

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Pepperdine University is a private, nonprofit Christian university headquartered in Malibu, California, enrolling over 7,700 students across six schools (Seaver, Caruso Law, Graziadio Business, GSEP, Public Policy, Health Science) with domestic graduate campuses and five international campuses.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Doctoral Research Universities (Multi-Disciplinary) (EDAHABAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Selective/Highly Selective Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAJ)

Keywords

• Higher education services
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate professional education
• Law school education
• Business school programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Malibu

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Educational Services: Revenue from undergraduate and graduate tuition across five colleges and schools including Seaver College, Caruso School of Law, Graziadio Business School, Graduate School of Education and Psychology, and School of Public Policy
2. Gifts and Donations: Charitable contributions from alumni, foundations, and donors supporting university programs and initiatives
3. Grants and Sponsored Programs: Research grants and sponsored programs funding academic research and initiatives
4. MostFundable Companies Competition: Competition entry fees and associated programs for US-based startups

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Pepperdine University delivers higher education services across six academic units spanning undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, and certificate programs in liberal arts, law, business, education, psychology, public policy, and health sciences. The university operates on-campus instruction at its main Malibu campus and multiple Southern California graduate campuses, supplemented by five international campuses and online learning delivery. Supporting the educational core are research programs, spiritual life programs, NCAA Division I athletics, and community-facing digital portals.

Product overview

Pepperdine University is a Christian university offering a comprehensive portfolio of educational products and services through five primary academic schools and one college. The core educational offerings include Seaver College (undergraduate), Caruso School of Law, Graziadio Business School, Graduate School of Education and Psychology (GSEP), School of Public Policy, and College of Health Science (which includes a newly launched School of Nursing as of Fall 2025). The university also operates digital platforms including the main website (pepperdine.edu), an emergency information website, a community portal for faculty/staff/students, and a jobs portal. Additionally, Pepperdine hosts programs such as the annual MostFundable Companies competition and academic conferences like the Oncology Symposium. The institution competes in NCAA Division I athletics as the Pepperdine Waves.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Seaver College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences The undergraduate college of Pepperdine University offering bachelor's degrees across multiple disciplines including liberal arts, sciences, business, and fine arts at the Malibu campus. It serves recent high school graduates seeking a residential Christian liberal arts education.
• Caruso School of Law Pepperdine's law school providing Juris Doctor degrees and offering programs in dispute resolution, entertainment law, and international law. It serves students pursuing legal education with an emphasis on ethics and dispute resolution.
• Graziadio Business School Pepperdine's business school offering undergraduate, master's, and doctoral business degrees with programs in finance, accounting, and business administration. It serves students pursuing business education with a focus on leadership, entrepreneurial skills, and ethical business practices.
• Graduate School of Education and Psychology (GSEP) Graduate school offering degrees in education (M.S. in Teaching, administration credentials) and psychology (MFT, clinical psychology doctoral programs). It serves mid-career professionals seeking advanced credentials in education and psychology fields.
• School of Public Policy Graduate school offering Master of Public Policy degree and certificate programs in governance, leadership, and policy analysis. It serves students pursuing careers in public policy and government.
• School of Nursing Newly launched nursing school within the College of Health Science, opened in Fall 2025 with support from a $4.8 million HCA Healthcare gift. It addresses nationwide nursing shortages by training nursing students with clinical preparation.
• MostFundable Companies Competition Annual competition open to all US-based startups to recognize promising companies, attracting thousands of startups across all 50 states with an annual first-round deadline of May 15. It serves startup founders seeking validation and visibility.
• Pepperdine Waves Athletics Pepperdine's NCAA Division I athletics program competing in the West Coast Conference with 17 teams known as the Waves. It serves student-athletes across multiple sports.
• Oncology Symposium Inaugural oncology symposium held at Pepperdine University's Smothers Theatre bringing together physicians, researchers, patients, and students to share cancer research findings and discuss innovations in patient care.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• MostFundable Companies Competition ParticipantsminorOthers · 1 April 2026The MostFundable Companies competition attracts thousands of startups across all 50 states to participate in Pepperdine's program designed to recognize promising startups. First-round deadline is May 15 annually.
• Mission AlivecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Mission Alive partnered with Pepperdine University's Empower and Equip Initiative through a second Lilly Endowment Inc. grant to expand the Rural and Small-Town Initiative. The expansion funded two additional Innovative Faith Communities, increasing the total to five communities focused on spiritual and social renewal across rural and small-town America.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Baylor University: Baylor is a private Christian research university in Texas with multiple graduate and professional schools (law, business, education, nursing, seminary). Like Pepperdine, it combines Baptist-affiliated identity with NCAA Division I athletics and a comprehensive doctoral research profile, making it the closest structural and mission peer.
• Southern Methodist University: SMU is a private university with Methodist religious affiliation, operating Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences plus law, business, engineering, and education schools. The comparable scale, faith-based identity, Dallas metro footprint, and Division I athletics (ACC) make it highly analogous to Pepperdine.
• Loyola Marymount University: LMU is a private Catholic university in Los Angeles operating multiple colleges including law, business, education, and liberal arts. Direct geographic overlap with Pepperdine, similar private religious-affiliated identity, and a comparable graduate/professional school structure make it a strong direct peer.
• Chapman University: Chapman is a private university in Orange County, California with law, business, education, pharmacy, and health sciences schools. Comparable California private-university positioning, recent expansion into health sciences, and similar mid-sized doctoral profile mirror Pepperdine's structure.
• University of San Diego: USD is a private Catholic university in San Diego with law, business, nursing, and education schools. The shared faith-based identity, California private-university positioning, comparable graduate/professional school mix, and similar scale place it as a direct comparable.
• Santa Clara University: Santa Clara is a Jesuit private university in Silicon Valley offering law, business, engineering, and education programs. Comparable California private religious-affiliated identity, similar graduate professional portfolio, and similar undergraduate-focused scale align closely with Pepperdine.
• Azusa Pacific University: Azusa Pacific is a private Christian university in California with undergraduate, graduate, seminary, and doctoral programs. Shared evangelical/evangelical-adjacent Christian identity, California geography, and similar professional-school mix (education, nursing, business) make it a direct comparable.
• Biola University: Biola is a private evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California offering undergraduate, seminary, and graduate programs. The closely aligned Christian identity, California location, and comparable faith-integrated curriculum make it a strong direct peer despite smaller scale.
• Regent University: Regent is a private Christian university in Virginia Beach with law, business, education, divinity, and government schools. The Christian mission, graduate/professional school portfolio, and online learning emphasis (similar to Pepperdine's Canvas-based programs) align it as a direct peer.
• University of Redlands: University of Redlands is a private California university with schools of business, education, and continuing studies. While secular, it is comparable as a private California university of similar scale serving graduate and undergraduate populations through regional campuses.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pepperdine
• YouTubeyoutube.com/pepperdine
• Facebookfacebook.com/pepperdine
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/edu/pepperdine-university-17897
• Instagraminstagram.com/pepperdine

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pepperdine University