General · EdgepediaSeptember 17, 20267 min read

DePaul University

DePaul University is a private Catholic, Vincentian research university in Chicago, Illinois, founded in 1898 and sponsored by the Congregation of the Mission, the religious order founded by Vincent de Paul.¹ Classified as a Carnegie R2 doctoral university, it enrolls roughly 14,090 undergraduates on urban campuses in Lincoln Park and the Loop, the city's downtown.² Its mission statement describes an institution "anchored in the global city of Chicago" that supports the integral human development of its students through teaching, academic excellence, real-world experience, and community engagement.³

Key fact	Detail
Founded	1898 at Fullerton and Sheffield avenues in Lincoln Park, Chicago, as St. Vincent's College⁴
Identity	Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition, sponsored by the Congregation of the Mission (C.M.)¹
Size	Roughly 14,090 undergraduates; Carnegie R2 research university²
Programs	More than 128 undergraduate and 145 graduate programs⁵
Undergraduate tuition, 2026-27	$16,060 per term, $48,180 annually, at the 12-18 credit hour package rate⁶
Rankings	No. 169 in U.S. News & World Report national universities; No. 208 on Forbes America's Top Colleges⁷
Fundraising	Mission: Forward, a $650 million campaign described as the most ambitious in its history⁸
Leadership	President Robert L. Manuel; Russell Ivy becomes provost July 1, 2026⁹

History

DePaul traces its founding to 1898, when it opened as the tiny, financially strained St. Vincent's College at the corner of Fullerton and Sheffield avenues in Lincoln Park. A centennial history published in 1998 traces its transformation into what that account calls the nation's second largest Catholic university, by then enrolling 17,800 students on six campuses.⁴

The university was open to students of all faiths from its earliest years and admitted women.²⁰ By 1917 it was offering many professional programs at a downtown Loop site, serving first-generation college students who worked, and after World War II it embraced adult learners returning under the GI Bill.⁴

Staying in Lincoln Park. In the late 1940s consultants urged DePaul to abandon its Lincoln Park campus, where the neighborhood was deteriorating and enrollment was small, and consolidate downtown. Administrators instead kept the Lincoln Park site and strengthened its academic programs; the university served as an anchor institution as neighborhood groups worked toward the area's rebirth.⁴ A scholarly history by Albert Erlebacher, professor emeritus of history at DePaul, covers the period from 1950, when the university almost lost its accreditation, to 1990, when it had emerged as a major American Catholic university, placing that growth in the context of the Second Vatican Council and Cold War competition with public universities.¹⁰

The front door of the Loop Campus is the DePaul Center at 1 E. Jackson Blvd., an 11-story former department store acquired in 1991 and reopened in 1993 after a $65 million rehabilitation; the building helped revitalize the South Loop.⁴

Mission and Catholic identity

DePaul's mission statement commits it to making education accessible to all, with special attention to underserved and underrepresented communities, a commitment it says it has kept since its founding in 1898.³ The Congregation of the Mission, the Vincentians founded by Vincent de Paul, continue to sponsor the university as an organic extension of their mission.¹ The university's strategic plan, "Grounded in Mission," aims to deepen its Catholic, Vincentian, and urban identity, including through leadership succession planning that prepares leaders "whatever their religious affiliations" to sustain that identity.¹¹

As a Catholic institution, DePaul prohibits distribution of any kind of birth control on its campus. A student group that was once the university's chapter of Planned Parenthood Generation Action has operated a contraceptive delivery service off campus since DePaul revoked its student-organization status in June 2025.¹²

Academics

DePaul's schools and colleges include the Driehaus College of Business, the College of Communication, the Jarvis College of Computing and Digital Media, the College of Education, the College of Science and Health, the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, the School of Music, The Theatre School, and the School of Continuing and Professional Studies.⁶ Students choose from more than 128 undergraduate and 145 graduate programs.⁵ DePaul was recognized by NASPA as a First-gen Forward Institution for its commitment to first-generation students.¹³

Some programs have drawn outside recognition. The Princeton Review's 2026 ranking of game design programs placed DePaul 25th, reporting that 77 percent of its 2025 game design graduates were hired.¹⁴ The university reports that over 90 percent of recent graduates find careers, further study, or other paths within six months.¹⁵

Cost and financial aid

Undergraduate tuition varies by program, credit hours, and admittance year. For 2026-27, students in most colleges enrolled in 12 to 18 credit hours pay a package rate of $16,060 per term, $48,180 annually, available in the Fall, Winter, and Spring terms; undergraduate Music and Theatre students pay $16,801 per term. Part-time rates are $878 per credit hour in most colleges and $1,166 in the School of Music and The Theatre School.⁶

Discounted adult pathway. The School of Continuing and Professional Studies charges $541 per credit hour, approximately 25 percent lower than the standard undergraduate part-time rate, and its majors may apply Prior Learning Assessment credit toward their degrees at a reduced cost.⁶ A mandatory Comprehensive Fee of $300 per term for full-time undergraduates supports student services, programs, and resources and is eligible for financial aid.⁶

Finances and recent pressures

A credit assessment published by the university described its financial profile as 'aa', with a strong balance sheet relative to debt, while assigning a 'bbb' Revenue Defensibility assessment reflecting high reliance on student revenue, moderately selective admissions, and a highly competitive market.¹⁶

Enrollment-driven cuts. In December 2025 the university cut more than 110 staff members to address a budget shortfall caused by rising costs and a significant drop in international graduate enrollment; President Robert Manuel had projected a $12.6 million shortfall for 2026, with a need to reduce spending by more than $27 million.¹⁷ The number of international graduate students fell by almost 62 percent in fall 2025, a decline the Associated Press described as a driving factor in the spending cuts.¹⁸ As part of cost management, the DePaul Art Museum closed to the public in June 2026; its more than 4,000-piece permanent collection remains at the Lincoln Park site for research and academic use, and since opening in 2011 the museum had featured the work of more than 600 Chicagoans and underrepresented artists.¹⁷ The Board of Trustees passed a 2027 budget combining continued cost reductions with targeted investments in enrollment, student success, and academic quality.¹⁷

Against these pressures, the university launched Mission: Forward, a $650 million fundraising campaign described as the most ambitious in its history, framed as an investment in students, faculty, and community and a renewal of its Catholic, Vincentian mission.⁸

Leadership

Robert L. Manuel serves as president, and his office coordinates the Designing DePaul strategic plan, overseen by a University Steering Committee and five subcommittees.¹⁹ In 2025 the university announced that Russell Ivy, vice provost for academic affairs at Florida Atlantic University since 2015, would serve as the next provost and senior vice president beginning July 1, 2026.⁹

References

Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Education and knowledge institutions › Higher education › Religious and theological higher education

Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026

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