Duquesne—One of Top 25 Catholic Schools and Among the Safest in the U.S.

Duquesne, newly rated as one of the top five Catholic colleges in the country, is among the 25 least expensive private schools in the nation, according to information from the National Center for Education Statistics—and our graduates have a high return on that investment, earning one of the top average salaries of graduates from local schools.

The University also has been named as among the nation’s top 25 safest public and private schools.

Here are details of Duquesne’s latest accolades:

Top Catholic School
The national news site Newsmax ranked Duquesne as No. 5 among more than 300 Catholic institutions, including the University of Notre Dame, Georgetown University, Boston College and Villanova University, as “integrating faith and reason with a rigorous academic education.” The website said, “These colleges and universities cater especially to students who have a strong desire to grow intellectually, morally and spiritually, learning to serve and care for others in their local and national communities.”

Affordability
Using 2014-2015 data from the U.S. Department of Education, the education research site StartClass compiled a list of the 25 private universities with the lowest tuition for full-time students. Schools included in this ranking had at least 5,000 undergraduate students and a “Smart Rating” of 80 or higher. This “Smart Rating” is based upon criteria including career readiness, admissions selectivity, expert opinion and academic excellence. Duquesne, listed at No. 21, cost $32,636 for undergraduate tuition and fees and holds a “Smart Rating” of 93.

High Return on Duquesne Degree
The Pittsburgh Business Times compiled a listing of how much graduates of local colleges make—one way to look at the return on one’s college investment. Duquesne was ranked No. 2, behind only Carnegie Mellon University. Although the average annual cost of attending Duquesne and graduation rates are similar to other regional institutions, the annual average salary of a Duquesne graduate is about 10 percent higher at $54,300.

Safety
For parents and their children, the safety of a campus provides priceless peace of mind. To quantify that quality, BackgroundChecks.org compiled a list of the Top 50 Safest Colleges in America, based on 2011-2013 data from schools with 5,000 or more students from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education, which keeps statistics on campus crime. Duquesne is listed at No. 24, with only nine on-campus incidents reported.