Universidad Católica de El Salvador

What Universidad Católica de El Salvador does

Universidad Católica de El Salvador (UNICAES) is a private Catholic higher education institution headquartered in Santa Ana, El Salvador, founded on April 13, 1982 by Monseñor Marco René Revelo y Contreras under the Conferencia Episcopal de El Salvador (CEDES), and led today by Rector Monseñor Miguel Ángel Morán Aquino. The university delivers undergraduate and graduate programs across four faculties — Ciencias Empresariales, Ciencias de la Salud, Ingeniería y Arquitectura, and Ciencias y Humanidades — plus the Escuela de Posgrados offering master's, doctoral (including a doctorate in Education with first cohort graduating December 2025), and specialization programs. It also operates a satellite Facultad Multidisciplinaria in Ilobasco.

The platform stack is conventional education technology: Moodle-based Aulas Virtuales for online and blended course delivery, a Biblioteca Digital, a Colecturía Digital payment system, institutional email on Google Workspace, and a dedicated Nuevo Ingreso admissions portal. Programs are delivered in presencial, semi-presencial, and fully online modalities, with multi-year tuition contracts and payment-plan options. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via the institution's website, social media, student recruitment events, community engagement, and international exchange programs through RUCAC and ODUCAL.

The revenue model is primarily subscription-recurring tuition and academic fees, supplemented by transaction fees on digital services. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Strategic customers and partners include the Gobierno de El Salvador (500 scholarships for cycle 01/2026), Banco Davivienda (hackathon sponsor), Fundación AECOS (ophthalmological outreach), TecNM (academic collaboration), Indiana State University (Engineers in Action), Fundación Botín, ISSS, and Focus Bear. The institution has held continuous CNAC-ES accreditation since 2002 and is a founding member of the RUCAC Catholic-university network.

Name

Universidad Católica de El Salvador

Legal name

Universidad Católica de El Salvador

Website

https://catolica.edu.sv

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Universidad Católica de El Salvador (UNICAES) is a private Catholic university in Santa Ana, El Salvador, offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs in business, health, engineering, and humanities to students in western El Salvador and via international exchange networks.

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

Online Divisions of Traditional Universities (Hybrid/Extension) (EDAHALAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

University/College Continuing Education (Extension) Programs (EDAAAEAA), Graduate Schools of Education (M.Ed., Ed.D., Ph.D.) (EDAHAFAB), Faculty-Led & Custom Group Study Abroad Programs (EDAIAAAA)

Keywords

• Higher education services
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate academic programs
• Distance learning platforms
• Catholic university education

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Ana

HQ country

El Salvador

HQ region

Latin America

Offices2 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 Academic Fees: Revenue generated from student tuition payments for undergraduate and graduate programs, including fees for academic processes, reentry applications, equivalency requests, and examination services.
2. Digital Services: Revenue from digital services including collective payments (colectoría digital), payment processing for various university services, and institutional email services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Universidad Católica de El Salvador (UNICAES) is a private Catholic higher education institution delivering undergraduate and graduate degree programs across four faculties: Business Sciences, Health Sciences, Engineering and Architecture, and Sciences and Humanities, supplemented by a Graduate School offering doctorates, master's, and specializations. Programs are delivered through on-campus, semi-presencial (blended), and online (Moodle-based) modalities, supported by student-facing services such as a digital library, an online tuition payment platform (Colecturía Digital), institutional email, and a dedicated admissions portal.

Product overview

Universidad Católica de El Salvador (UNICAES) is a higher education institution offering a multi-faculty portfolio of undergraduate and graduate programs. Its technology-enhanced service portfolio includes a Moodle-based virtual learning platform (Aulas Virtuales), a digital library, a digital payments system (Colecturía Digital), institutional email via Google Workspace, and a dedicated admissions portal. The institution is organized into four academic faculties (Business Sciences, Health Sciences, Engineering and Architecture, Sciences and Humanities) and a Graduate School (Escuela de Posgrados) offering doctoral programs and specializations. Research outputs are disseminated through the university's scientific journal, Health SRP. Programs are delivered in in-person, semi-presential, and fully online modalities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Facultad de Ciencias Empresariales (Faculty of Business Sciences) Academic unit offering undergraduate degree programs in business disciplines including Administration, Accounting, Marketing, Tourism, Digital Business Management, and International Business, available in in-person and semi-presential modalities, for prospective students seeking business and management education in western El Salvador.
• Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud (Faculty of Health Sciences) Academic unit delivering health science degree programs including the Doctor of Medicine, Nursing, Nutrition and Dietetics, and Chemistry and Pharmacy, for students pursuing careers in healthcare in El Salvador.
• Facultad de Ingeniería y Arquitectura (Faculty of Engineering and Architecture) Academic unit offering undergraduate programs in civil, mechanical, electrical, chemical, and software engineering, Architecture, and Agricultural Engineering, for students pursuing technical and engineering careers.
• Facultad de Ciencias y Humanidades (Faculty of Sciences and Humanities) Academic unit delivering undergraduate programs in Law, Journalism, Graphic Design, English Language, and Education in in-person and semi-presential modalities, for students pursuing humanities and social science careers.
• Escuela de Posgrados (Graduate School) Graduate-level academic unit offering doctoral degrees (including Doctor in Education), master's programs, specializations such as nursing management, and continuing education programs for working professionals seeking advanced credentials.
• Aulas Virtuales (Moodle Virtual Learning Platform) Online learning management system (LMS) providing enrolled students with virtual classroom access, course materials, and academic resources for fully online and blended (semi-presencial) program delivery.
• Biblioteca Digital (Digital Library) Digital library service providing enrolled students and faculty with access to the university's academic catalog, electronic resources, and online library solvency requests.
• Colecturía Digital (Digital Payments Service) Online payment platform enabling students to make tuition and university fee payments digitally, supporting payment plan management (Plan de Pago) and remote transactions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 670 ophthalmological surgeries and 4,499 consultations provided to low-income populations since 2019
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered major, core, flagship and minor.

• Instituto Tecnológico de Tijuana (TecNM)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 August 2025Academic, linkage, and scientific collaboration agreement signed for joint research, faculty and student exchange, scientific production on circular economy and social innovation, participation in congresses, support for RIESS Network and Social Leader Program, and the '1 Million Students Trained in SDGs' project aligned with UN Agenda 2030.
• Red de Universidades Católicas de América Central (RUCAC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNICAES is a founding member of RUCAC, a network of 4 Catholic universities across Central America (Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama) with 24 campuses serving 40,000+ students and 2,200+ faculty. The network promotes collaborative academic exchange, joint research, three academic congresses, and three training diplomas for faculty and administrators. UNICAES is represented by its Vicerrector General Dr. Moisés Antonio Martínez Zaldívar.
• Fundación AECOSmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership facilitating international ophthalmological specialists from the United States to collaborate with UNICAES on surgical jornadas providing free cataract and other eye surgeries to low-income populations in western El Salvador since 2019, achieving 670+ surgical interventions.
• Organización de Universidades Católicas de América Latina y El Caribe (ODUCAL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNICAES participates in ODUCAL through RUCAC membership, contributing to continental academic initiatives and subregional activities in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. UNICAES participated in the XIX Encounter of Culture Centers in Puebla, Mexico.
• Dirección de Integración del Gobierno de El SalvadorflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistoric agreement signed September 2025 to provide 500 scholarships for Salvadoran youth beginning academic cycle 01/2026. Beneficiaries are high school seniors meeting requirements established by the Directorate of Integration's formative process.
• Universidad Estatal de IndianamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational collaboration through Dr. Cydni M. Robertson for the 'Engineers in Action' project connecting UNICAES students with professional competencies while providing innovative ideas to leading companies in the country.
• Instituto Salvadoreño del Seguro Social (ISSS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint blood donation campaigns supporting the national blood supply, with participation from the Faculty of Health Sciences at UNICAES facilities.
• Banco Davivienda El SalvadorminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor and organizer of the national hackathon competition where UNICAES students won first place in 2024, developing innovative fintech solutions for campus payments.
• Fundación BotínmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProgram for Strengthening Public Function in Latin America bringing UNICAES architecture student Gissela Cruz to Spain and Colombia for two months of academic sessions, leadership training, and cultural activities, including a meeting with King Felipe VI.
• Various Salvadoran CompaniesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLocal companies participating in the 'Engineers in Action' internship program providing practical professional experience to UNICAES engineering students while discovering new talent for recruitment.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Universidad Don Bosco (UDB): Salesian private university in Soyapango, El Salvador, offering undergraduate and graduate programs across engineering, business, health sciences, and humanities. Operates in the same religiously-affiliated private-university niche as UNICAES.
• Universidad Dr. José Matías Delgado: Private Salvadoran university in San Salvador with broad undergraduate and graduate programs including architecture, engineering, health sciences, and business. Competes for the same metropolitan and regional Salvadoran student pool.
• Universidad de El Salvador (UES): The national public university of El Salvador, offering the broadest range of undergraduate and graduate programs in the country. Sets the public-sector price benchmark against which UNICAES must position its private Catholic offering.
• Universidad Francisco Gavidia (UFG): Private non-Catholic university in San Salvador with multi-faculty undergraduate, graduate, and continuing-education programs. Competes with UNICAES for the same prospective Salvadoran student segments across business, health, and engineering.
• Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador (UTEC): Private Salvadoran university with strong engineering, architecture, and technology programs, plus business and health sciences faculties. Directly comparable in academic portfolio structure and target student segments to UNICAES.
• Universidad Católica de Costa Rica (CATÓLICA): Private Catholic university in Costa Rica and fellow RUCAC network member. Comparable institutional profile, multi-faculty structure, and Catholic-identity positioning, operating in a neighboring Central American market.
• Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas (UCA): Private Jesuit university in San Salvador, El Salvador, with comparable multi-faculty undergraduate and graduate offerings and similar Catholic identity. It is the closest direct competitor in the same Salvadoran private-Catholic higher-education segment.
• Universidad Católica de Honduras (UNICAH): Private Catholic university in Honduras and a fellow RUCAC network member with comparable multi-faculty structure and Catholic-identity positioning. Most directly comparable regional peer for cross-border benchmarking.

Broad incumbents

• Tecnológico de Monterrey: Large Mexican private university network with broad undergraduate, graduate, and online programs across Latin America. Represents the broader, well-funded private-university benchmark against which UNICAES's digital and multi-modal offerings are evaluated.
• Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (PUC): Top-ranked Latin American Catholic research university offering comprehensive undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs with strong research output. Sets the prestige benchmark for Catholic-affiliated higher education across the region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Universidad Católica de El Salvador