Concordia University Chicago

What Concordia University Chicago does

Concordia University Chicago is a private Christian university located in River Forest, Illinois, affiliated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and operating as part of the Concordia University System. The institution was founded in 1864 (firmographic record) or established through an 1890 merger of two predecessor institutions (corporate history record), and now offers undergraduate, graduate, online, and accelerated degree programs organized across multiple colleges including Business and Education, with specialized Church Professional Programs for ministry-track students. Core academic products span traditional residential undergraduate programs, accelerated degree formats for adult learners, fully online programs with global reach, and master's and doctoral offerings, delivered through a CougarNet technology platform that centralizes ID card services, IT support, media production, printing (PaperCut-integrated), streaming video, and telecommunications. Operating infrastructure relies on a Banner student information system for financial aid and records, TouchNet for tuition billing and payment plans, and integration with the IRS Data Retrieval Tool for FAFSA processing.

Revenue is generated primarily through tuition and fees across undergraduate ($37,740/year full-time), graduate, online, and accelerated programs, supplemented by room and board ($11,872/year), mandatory student fees, and ancillary campus services including media production and print services. The go-to-market model is sales-led, executed by a regional team of admission counselors covering defined Midwestern territories, transfer partnerships with community colleges and other universities, and referral relationships with Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod congregations, schools, and districts. The customer base spans traditional undergraduates, transfer students, graduate students, adult learners, online/distance learners, international students, and church professional candidates, with Lutheran-affiliated students representing a structurally important sub-segment supported by the Prepared to Serve tuition guarantee.

Student outcomes are positioned around a 91% post-graduation employment or graduate school placement rate, 100% institutional aid coverage for qualified traditional undergraduates, and a 22+ year track record of Golden Apple Foundation awards for teaching excellence. Recent strategic activity has emphasized international partnership expansion (Lutheran Church-Canada, June 2026), a $5,000 tuition cap for church professional programs (Fall 2025), and campuswide rollout of AI learning tools (May 2026).

Name

Concordia University Chicago

Legal name

Concordia University Chicago

Website

https://cuchicago.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1890

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Concordia University Chicago is a private Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod-affiliated university in River Forest, Illinois, offering undergraduate, graduate, online, and accelerated degree programs across business, education, theology, and liberal arts, serving traditional, transfer, adult, and church professional students.

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

Christian Colleges with Theological Programs (EDAHAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Denominational Theological Colleges (e.g., Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical) (EDAHAKAM), Religiously Affiliated Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAF)

Keywords

• Higher education
• Undergraduate programs
• Graduate programs
• Online education
• Church professional training

Headquarters

HQ city

River Forest

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Undergraduate Tuition: Traditional undergraduate tuition at $37,740 per year ($18,870 per semester), with part-time pricing at $1,144 per credit hour and overload charges at $572 per credit hour
2. Graduate Tuition: Graduate programs with varying tuition rates based on program type
3. Media and Production Services: Video/audio production, CD/DVD/Blu-ray duplication, and broadcast services for on-campus and off-campus clients
4. Print Services: Printing and copying services for students, faculty, and staff with per-page pricing and departmental billing
5. Room and Board: On-campus housing at $6,772 per year and meal plans at $5,100 per year for residential students

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Concordia University Chicago is a private Christian university that delivers undergraduate, graduate, and online degree programs rooted in the Lutheran tradition. It offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees across multiple colleges including Business, Education, Theology, and Liberal Arts, supplemented by church professional programs, student support services, and campus technology resources through the CougarNet platform.

Product overview

Concordia University Chicago is a private Christian university offering a comprehensive educational portfolio across undergraduate, graduate, and online modalities. The institution operates as a multi-college university with distinct academic colleges including Business and Education, alongside specialized Church Professional Programs for theological training. Student-facing technology services are centralized through CougarNet, encompassing ID services, IT support, media production, and print services via PaperCut integration. Financial operations are managed through Student Business Services with TouchNet payment processing, while health and counseling services provide on-campus wellness support. The university recently announced campuswide AI tool access for students to prepare for emerging workforce technologies. Core academic products are organized by delivery format: traditional undergraduate residential programs, accelerated degree options, fully online programs, and graduate degree offerings at master's and doctoral levels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Undergraduate Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% of graduates employed or enrolled in graduate programs within 6 months of graduation
• +1 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Lutheran Church–CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 June 2026Concordia University Chicago (CUC) and Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) announced a new partnership agreement affirming their shared commitment to Confessional Lutheran education and the formation of Christian leaders across various disciplines. The partnership is built on shared commitments to Lutheran educational values.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wheaton College: Prominent private Christian liberal arts university in Illinois with a similar residential model, strong outcomes reputation, and overlapping faith-based recruitment markets.
• Concordia University Ann Arbor: Small private Lutheran institution in the Concordia System; competes for transfer students and offers overlapping online and accelerated programs with comparable pricing.
• North Park University: Chicago-area private Christian university with similar size, mission, urban-suburban location profile, and competing for the same regional student pool.
• Valparaiso University: Private Lutheran university in the Midwest with overlapping faith-based identity, comparable tuition and residential pricing, and similar undergraduate program breadth.
• Augustana University: Private Lutheran university in South Dakota with comparable size, mission, residential model, and competing for the broader LCMS-recruited and regional Midwest student pool.
• Trinity International University: Private evangelical Christian university in the Chicago suburbs offering undergraduate, graduate, and seminary programs that compete directly with CUC's church professional and theology offerings.
• Concordia University Wisconsin: Sister institution in the Concordia University System sharing the LCMS affiliation, similarly small private Lutheran university model, overlapping undergraduate and graduate program mix and shared back-office infrastructure.
• Concordia University St. Paul: Concordia System peer offering comparable residential, accelerated, and online undergraduate programs with the same LCMS affiliation and similar tuition discount dynamics.
• Concordia University Nebraska: Another LCMS-affiliated Concordia university with similar theological, education, and business programs; competes for the same LCMS-recruited student pool across regions.
• Bethany Lutheran College: Wisconsin-based LCMS-affiliated college with overlapping theological, education, and liberal arts programs targeted at the same Lutheran high school pipeline.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cuchicago
• YouTubeyoutube.com/concordiauniversitychicago
• Facebookfacebook.com/ConcordiaUniversityChicago
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/concordia-university-chicago
• Instagraminstagram.com/concordia_chicago

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 Concordia University Chicago