Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta'

What Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta' does

Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta' (UNICA) is a private Catholic university founded in 1983 and headquartered in Maracaibo, Estado Zulia, Venezuela. The institution operates four faculties — Arte y Música, Comunicación Social, Educación, and Teología y Filosofía — offering undergraduate programs, postgraduate specializations (including Dirección Coral, Composición Musical, Filosofía para Niños y Niñas, Enseñanza de la Lengua, and Enseñanza de la Historia), master's degrees, and doctoral programs through the Faculty of Research and Postgraduate Studies. UNICA's distinguishing operational feature is its Plataforma Multimodal, a hybrid learning system that combines in-person instruction with a distance education mode built on a Moodle-based LMS supplemented by Google Meet, Zoom, and Google Classroom for synchronous sessions.

The university's core technology stack centers on the Plataforma Multimodal accessed via edis.unicaedu.com, paired with a student portal at web.unicaedu.com for enrollment, registration, and academic management. Auxiliary digital assets include Radio UNICA for live streaming, the Revistas UNICA digital research journals platform, and a digital books repository (Libros Digitales). The institution is led by Rector Eduardo Ortigoza, who also serves as Vicario Episcopal para la Educación y Cultura de la Arquidi\u00f3cesis de Maracaibo, anchoring UNICA's ecclesiastical affiliation with the Archdiocese of Maracaibo. The university maintains 251 employees as disclosed.

UNICA generates revenue almost exclusively through tuition and enrollment fees for its undergraduate, postgraduate, and specialization programs, structured on a recurring subscription-like basis per academic term. Tuition pricing is not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer, conducted through the institutional website (unica.edu.ve), active social media profiles on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, a YouTube tutorial library covering enrollment and payment procedures, and a Gmail-based newsletter subscription. Distribution occurs both via on-campus enrollment in Maracaibo and self-serve registration on the distance learning platform for students nationwide. Student segments span school-leavers seeking undergraduate degrees, working professionals pursuing postgraduate qualifications, and scholarship recipients supported via partnerships such as the Fundación Jesús Enrique Lossada (JEL) program.

Name

Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta'

Legal name

Universidad Católica Cecilio Acosta

Website

https://unicaedu.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta' (UNICA) is a private Venezuelan Catholic university in Maracaibo offering undergraduate and postgraduate programs across four faculties via a multimodal in-person and distance learning platform, serving individual students nationwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAHAKAF

Missionary Training Colleges & Schools

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Religious & Theological Colleges

SECONDARYEDAHAFAA

Undergraduate Teacher Education Colleges

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Teacher Training Colleges (Education Schools)

SECONDARYEDAHACAM

Great Books/Core Curriculum Liberal Arts Colleges

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Liberal Arts Colleges

SECONDARYEDAHALAG

Online Teacher Education Universities (Licensure & M.Ed.)

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Distance & Online Universities

Keywords

• Higher education
• Distance learning
• Catholic university
• Undergraduate programs
• Postgraduate specializations

Headquarters

HQ city

Maracaibo

HQ country

Venezuela

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Tuition and enrollment fees: UNICA generates revenue primarily through student tuition and enrollment fees for its undergraduate, graduate, and specialization programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta' (UNICA) is a private Catholic university offering undergraduate and postgraduate education through four faculties (Arts and Music, Social Communication, Education, and Theology and Philosophy). It delivers instruction via on-campus classes in Maracaibo and a multimodal distance learning platform (UnicaDIS / Plataforma Multimodal) that combines synchronous and asynchronous instruction using Moodle, Google Meet, Zoom, and Google Classroom. Additional offerings include postgraduate specializations, master's programs, university radio, digital research journals, and digital books.

Product overview

Universidad Católica Cecilio Acosta (UNICA) is a higher education institution offering a unified academic platform combining on-campus and distance learning modalities. The core offering is the Plataforma Multimodal, a distance learning system that integrates synchronous and asynchronous instruction accessible to students regardless of location. The institution operates through four faculties (Arte y Música, Comunicación Social, Educación, and Teología y Filosofía) providing undergraduate programs, and a dedicated post-graduate division offering specializations in areas such as Dirección Coral, Composición Musical, Filosofía para Niños, Enseñanza de la Lengua, and Enseñanza de la Historia. Additional services include Radio UNICA for broadcasting, digital journals (Revistas UNICA), and digital books (Libros Digitales) for research and academic dissemination.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Facultad de Arte y Música Academic faculty offering professional training in Visual and Auditory Arts (e.g., Graphic Design, music) with a focus on local and national presence within a universal context; targets prospective undergraduate students.
• Facultad de Comunicación Social Transdisciplinary faculty focused on training communication professionals to develop social communication proposals; serves undergraduate students in Social Communication.
• Facultad de Educación Faculty focused on teacher training and professional development, emphasizing renewal of practice within education programs; targets students pursuing education-related undergraduate degrees.
• Facultad de Teología y Filosofía Faculty dedicated to forming professionals with lucid and creative mindsets capable of understanding and categorizing reality for transformative action; serves undergraduate Theology and Philosophy students.
• Plataforma Multimodal UNICA (UnicaDIS) Distance learning platform combining in-person and remote instruction, enabling students to access synchronous and asynchronous classes regardless of location via Moodle-based LMS with Google Meet, Zoom, and Google Classroom integration.
• Especialización en Dirección Coral Postgraduate specialization training professionals to address universal choral literature, form choral groups, and conduct performances.
• Especialización en Composición Musical Postgraduate specialization preparing professionals for musical composition work and teaching in universities, conservatories, and music schools.
• Especialización en Filosofía para Niños y Niñas Postgraduate specialization enabling professionals to understand children's reasoning and logic, promoting critical and creative thinking in young learners.
• Especialización en Enseñanza de la Lengua Postgraduate specialization in Spanish as a second/foreign language, providing solid knowledge in Spanish linguistics and teaching methodology.
• Especialización en Enseñanza de la Historia Postgraduate specialization training professionals to efficiently address national historical processes and develop historical consciousness in students.
• Radio UNICA University radio station providing broadcasting services and live streaming content to the university community and external audience.
• Revistas UNICA Digital research journals platform hosting academic publications from the university community.
• Libros Digitales UNICA Digital books repository offering access to academic and scholarly digital publications.

Quantifiable outcome

• 102 graduates in LXXII promotion (September 2023)
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Fundación Jesús Enrique Lossada (JEL)minorOthers · 2 March 2025The Fundación Jesús Enrique Lossada (JEL) conducts annual data updates for scholarship recipients at UNICA, maintaining the database of students who receive financial support through the scholarship program. The partnership ensures that becados (scholarship students) have direct contact with coordinators for their scholarship allocations.
• Arquidióesis de MaracaibocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNICA is under the ecclesiastical authority of the Arquidióesis de Maracaibo. The rector, Eduardo Ortigoza, serves as Vicario Episcopal para la Educación y Cultura of the Arquidióesis. The university maintains strong ties with the church, hosting religious events such as Masses at the Basílica de la Virgen del Rosario de Chiquinquirá for graduation ceremonies.
• Fundación Amigos del Niño con CáncerminorOthersUNICA participates as a collection center for plastic bottle caps in support of the Fundación Amigos del Niño con Cáncer, which uses the proceeds to assist children with cancer. Faculty, staff, and students contribute to this community initiative.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Universidad Rafael Urdaneta (URU): URU is a private non-Catholic university in Maracaibo (same city as UNICA), with broader program coverage including engineering and architecture. Comparable as a competing private regional university in the Zulia market.
• Universidad Católica de Colombia: Universidad Católica de Colombia is a Catholic university outside Venezuela. Comparable as a Latin American Catholic university with similar program mix and a developing distance-learning modality, useful as a cross-border benchmark.
• Universidad Metropolitana (UNIMET): UNIMET is a private Venezuelan university in Caracas. Comparable as a peer private institution competing for the same student pool, though secular and with a broader STEM/business portfolio.
• Universidad del Zulia (LUZ): LUZ is the large public university headquartered in Maracaibo, Zulia. Comparable as the dominant higher-education institution in UNICA's home geography with overlapping humanities and education programs.
• Universidad de los Andes (ULA): ULA is a major Venezuelan public university based in Mérida. Comparable as a peer higher-education institution with humanities and education programs similar to UNICA's Faculties of Education and Theology/Philosophy.

Direct peers

• Universidad Católica Andrés Bello (UCAB): UCAB is Venezuela's leading private Catholic university with campuses in Caracas and multiple regional centers. It is the most directly comparable peer — same Catholic identity, similar multimodal and distance-learning programs, and overlapping humanities/social-sciences portfolio.
• Universidad Católica del Táchira (UCAT): UCAT is a Venezuelan private Catholic university based in San Cristóbal. It is directly comparable as a regional Catholic institution with a similar humanities/social-sciences focus and limited program breadth.

Emerging players

• Universidad Nacional Experimental de las Artes (UNEARTE): UNEARTE is a Venezuelan public arts university. Comparable as the most direct peer for UNICA's Facultad de Arte y Música, potentially competing for the same niche of arts students nationally.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/unicaeduve
• Facebookfacebook.com/unicaeduve
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/unicaeduve
• Instagraminstagram.com/unicaeduve

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Universidad Católica 'Cecilio Acosta'