Viterbo University

What Viterbo University does

Viterbo University is a private, nonprofit Catholic, Franciscan university founded in 1890 by the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and headquartered in La Crosse, Wisconsin. It serves approximately 1,900 students across five colleges offering 40+ undergraduate and 30+ graduate programs spanning nursing, business, education, performing arts, sciences, and engineering. The institution emphasizes liberal arts within a Catholic framework, distinguished by a Master of Arts in Servant Leadership and the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership.

The university operates a multi-channel admissions model targeting first-year, transfer, graduate, international, military, and adult-learner populations. Revenue derives primarily from undergraduate and graduate tuition (2026-27 undergraduate tuition of $36,720/year; graduate programs priced per-credit from $320 to $1,050), supplemented by donations and advancement, federal and foundation grants ($12.5M+ secured recently), Fine Arts Center ticketing and facility rentals (90,000+ annual guests), room and board, and athletics (NAIA Division II). Distribution channels include on-campus delivery, a fully online learning platform (6+ online programs), articulation partnerships with Wisconsin Technical Colleges and Western Technical College (up to 90 transferable credits), international student recruitment, and Yellow Ribbon Program military benefits.

Underlying technology consists of standard higher-ed systems: Ellucian CRM Recruit for admissions, Moodle for LMS, Starfish for early-alert student success, Qualtrics for surveys, Zoom and Echo360 for instruction, SharePoint for collaboration, and Watermark for institutional effectiveness. There are no proprietary technology products or AI-driven capabilities disclosed. Operations are supported by an 11:1 student-faculty ratio, 19 varsity athletic teams, and over 35 student organizations, with leadership under President Rick Trietley (extended through June 30, 2029).

Name

Viterbo University

Legal name

Viterbo University

Website

https://viterbo.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1890

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Viterbo University is a private Catholic, Franciscan university in La Crosse, Wisconsin, serving approximately 1,900 undergraduate and graduate students across more than 40 undergraduate and 30 graduate programs in nursing, business, education, performing arts, and sciences.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Religiously Affiliated Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Residential Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAH), General Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAA)

Keywords

• Higher education services
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate degree programs
• Online degree completion
• Professional certificate programs

Headquarters

HQ city

La Crosse

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Undergraduate Tuition: Full-time undergraduate tuition for traditional four-year programs. Revenue is charged per academic year with direct costs including tuition, activity fees, and technology fees. Financial aid and merit scholarships offset costs for most students.
2. Graduate Tuition: Graduate programs charged per credit hour with rates varying by program. Programs include master's and doctoral degrees across nursing, education, business, counseling, and speech-language pathology.
3. Bachelor Completion Programs: Online degree completion programs for working adults with per-credit tuition rates. Programs include RN-BSN, business, accounting, elementary education, and health care management.
4. Donations and Advancement: Alumni and donor giving through annual fund, planned giving, and major gift programs. The Advancement office manages fundraising campaigns and scholarship endowments.
5. Fine Arts Center Revenue: Ticket sales and facility rentals for professional touring productions, Broadway shows, concerts, and community events at the Fine Arts Center. Also includes rental income from external organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Viterbo University is a private Catholic Franciscan liberal arts university that delivers higher education through five colleges and schools, offering 40+ undergraduate and 30+ graduate degree programs plus 6+ online programs in nursing, business, education, sciences, performing arts, counseling, and ethics. It serves approximately 1,900 students via on-campus, blended, and fully online formats, with articulation partnerships, military student services, and a Fine Arts Center hosting 90,000+ guests annually.

Product overview

Viterbo University is a Catholic, Franciscan liberal arts university offering a comprehensive portfolio of educational products and services. The university operates as a multi-college institution with over 40 undergraduate programs, 30+ graduate programs, and 7 online programs. The core academic structure includes the College of Nursing and Health, College of Engineering, Letters, and Sciences, College of Business, Leadership, and Ethics (featuring the Dahl School of Business), School of Education, and Conservatory for the Performing Arts. Supporting services include the Fine Arts Center (welcoming 90,000+ guests annually), Center for Professional Learning (customized organizational programs), D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership, The HUB for Student Success, and specialized Bachelor Completion Programs with 8-week terms for adult learners. The university serves approximately 1,900 students from its La Crosse, Wisconsin campus.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Center for Professional Learning: Professional learning programs offering certificates and customized learning for organizations.
• D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership
• Fine Arts Center

Products and services

• Undergraduate Programs More than 40 undergraduate degree programs delivered in traditional on-campus format across business, nursing, education, sciences, humanities, and performing arts for recent high school graduates and transfer students.
• Graduate Programs More than 30 graduate programs including master's and doctoral degrees in nursing, education, business, counseling, nutrition, and speech-language pathology, offered in flexible face-to-face, blended, and online formats for working professionals.
• Online Programs A portfolio of seven fully online degree and certificate programs including bachelor's completion in business, education, and nursing (RN-BSN), plus graduate programs in business leadership and education for remote learners.
• Bachelor Completion Programs Five online and on-campus completion programs for adult learners with prior college credit, delivered in 8-week terms, covering accounting, business leadership, elementary education, health care management, and nursing RN-BSN completion.
• Fine Arts Center Professional-grade performance venue hosting the Conservatory for the Performing Arts, Main Theatre, LaCroix Black Box Theatre, Nola Starling Recital Hall, dance studios, practice rooms, and design labs, welcoming over 90,000 guests annually through ticket sales, facility rentals, and community events.
• Conservatory for the Performing Arts Pre-professional training program in theatre, musical theatre, music education, vocal performance, and dance, using the professional-grade facilities of the Fine Arts Center.
• College of Nursing and Health Academic unit comprising the School of Nursing, Communication Disorders and Sciences Department, and Nutrition and Dietetics Department, offering CCNE-accredited nursing programs from BSN through DNP along with related health sciences degrees.
• Dahl School of Business ACBSP-accredited business school offering undergraduate and graduate business degrees including the MBA and specialized programs such as the MBA in Health Care Leadership.
• School of Education Teacher preparation programs at undergraduate and graduate levels leading to Wisconsin, Iowa, and national teaching licenses and certifications.
• Center for Professional Learning Customized leadership and educational programs for organizations, offering Servant Leadership certificates, Strategic Planning (Compression Planning), Nonprofit Leadership, and Sports Nutrition certifications.
• D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership Ethics education, research, and dialogue programming delivered through a lecture series, Holocaust Educators Workshop, Rebuilding American Civics, Leadership at Noon, publications, podcasts, and ethics conferences.
• The HUB for Student Success Centralized student support services including academic advising, career development, tutoring, writing assistance, accessibility services, and TRIO/Student Support Services for enrolled students.
• College of Engineering, Letters, and Sciences Academic unit comprising the Schools of Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Science, Mathematics and Engineering, offering ABET-accredited engineering and ASBMB-certified biochemistry programs.
• Master of Arts in Servant Leadership (MASL) Graduate degree program in servant leadership, one of few such programs in the country, offered through the Center for Professional Learning.

Quantifiable outcome

• 98% job and grad school placement rate over the last five years
• +4 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration18 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Western Technical CollegecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCo-Admission partnership allows students to be formally admitted to both Western Technical College and Viterbo University, enabling ease of transfer and transition. Students can pursue technical college programs while working toward Viterbo bachelor's degrees.
• Wisconsin Technical CollegescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorArticulation agreements enabling transfer of up to 90 credits toward bachelor's degrees in Accounting, Business Leadership, Elementary Education, Nursing, and more. Streamlined pathways for adult learners completing associate degrees.
• La Crosse Boys & Girls ClubsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to expand arts education and youth programming through collaboration with Mathy Center.
• Weber Center for the Performing ArtsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership with downtown La Crosse performing arts venue to enrich cultural programming and arts education for the region.
• Council of Independent Colleges (CIC)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerViterbo awarded $65,315 NetVUE Program Development Grant through CIC to support vocational exploration for students.
• Health Care SystemscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnerships with regional health care systems for clinical placements, nursing education, and workforce training programs.
• Area EmployersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborations with employers for internships, career development, and workforce alignment of academic programs.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• University of St. Thomas (Minnesota): Catholic, private, residential university in Saint Paul, Minnesota that competes with Viterbo for religious-affiliated students in the Upper Midwest and overlaps in undergraduate and graduate programs including business, education, and health sciences.
• St. Norbert College: Catholic, Franciscan liberal arts college in De Pere, Wisconsin of comparable size to Viterbo, with overlapping Franciscan identity, undergraduate liberal arts core, and similar regional enrollment base.
• Cardinal Stritch University: Catholic, Franciscan university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin sharing the Franciscan heritage with Viterbo and competing for similar transfer, adult-learner, and graduate students across Wisconsin.
• Loras College: Catholic liberal arts college in Dubuque, Iowa with similar size, liberal arts core, and Catholic mission, drawing from the same regional Iowa/Wisconsin/Illinois tri-state area.
• Edgewood College: Catholic, Dominican university in Madison, Wisconsin comparable in size to Viterbo with overlapping undergraduate and graduate offerings, including nursing, business, and education.
• Marian University (Wisconsin): Catholic, non-profit university in Indianapolis/Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, of comparable scale with traditional undergraduate and adult-learner programs in nursing, education, and business, competing for similar Catholic-affiliated students.
• Saint Mary's University of Minnesota: Catholic, Lasallian university in Winona, Minnesota with a comparable mix of traditional undergraduate and adult-learner/graduate programs, including a strong tuition model for non-traditional students.
• Benedictine College: Catholic, Benedictine liberal arts college in Atchison, Kansas that competes with Viterbo for religiously engaged students and has a similar Catholic liberal arts identity, undergraduate focus, and scholarship programs.

Regional players

• University of Wisconsin–La Crosse: Public university in the same city as Viterbo with overlapping undergraduate programs in business, education, and health sciences, representing the most direct local competitive threat given shared geography and regional draw.

Broad incumbents

• Marquette University: Larger Catholic, Jesuit university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with overlapping graduate programs (business, nursing, education) and a broader athletic brand (NCAA Division I), representing a larger incumbent in the same Catholic market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/viterbo_univ
• Facebookfacebook.com/45542183211
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/viterbo-university
• Instagraminstagram.com/viterbobound

Compliance14 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 Viterbo University