Introducing Dominican University’s Chicago Campus

An innovative city immersion campus in the heart of Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood offering expanded education opportunities shaped by our relationships with community partners and guided by industry needs.

Creating the Next Era of Impact

For more than a century, Dominican University has expanded access to education so that all students have the same opportunity to thrive and graduate—with purpose. We are proud to announce that Dominican will expand this mission into Chicago, creating a new hub for a variety of programs including a residential, cohort-based associate degree, credit and non-credit workforce development certificate programs, adult degree completion options and select graduate programs, pending all appropriate accreditation and state approvals.

A Partnership Rooted in Mission

To bring our new campus to life, Dominican is partnering with The Resurrection Project, which has been serving Chicago’s southwest neighborhoods for more than 30 years.

Una Asociación Basada en la Misión

Para dar vida a nuestro nuevo campus, Dominican se ha asociado con The Resurrection Project, que ha estado sirviendo a los vecindarios del suroeste de Chicago durante más de 30 años.

An Ideal Location for Immersive Learning

Housed at The Resurrection Project’s La Casa Residence Hall and neighboring Resource Center, Dominican’s new campus will serve students across Chicago, specifically on the city's south side. Located in the heart of the Pilsen community, this six-story dorm will be home to 100 students in a vibrant living-learning community that offers modern apartment-style living. Students will learn alongside fellow trailblazers, developing a built-in network of support and connections that will last through graduation and beyond.

Intimate Learning Environment

Students will study in Dominican’s signature small class sizes at La Casa’s Resource Center, which offers four concurrent classrooms.

Collaborative Living

Apartment-style living offers students unmatched opportunities to engage with their peers in addition to the perks of single-occupancy rooms, study space, and a shared kitchen.

Close to it All

Just steps from the CTA Pink Line, La Casa offers easy access to public transportation and extensive community amenities, including restaurants, entertainment, and cultural activities.

Programs Built for All Learners

The Chicago campus will offer adult degree completion, certificate programs and graduate programs to community members. These programs have been thoughtfully created through our relationships with community partners and industry experts and are designed to support the local economy—starting with healthcare, cybersecurity, legal studies and leadership development using trauma-informed approaches. Students of all ages will gain experience in fields of critical need, preparing them to make an immediate impact.

Students sitting around table with faculty member

Education Opportunities Designed with All Students in Mind

Dominican’s Chicago campus will offer thoughtfully crafted, high-impact programs that combine local community hopes and aspirations with industry needs.

An Associate’s Degree that Builds Paths Toward Career-Changing Outcomes

Pending accreditation and state approval, Dominican intends to provide an innovative associate degree pathway at our new campus. Our cohort-based model will offer hands-on coursework, allowing students to gain experience in fields of critical need, including healthcare, technology and community services. Upon graduation, students will be well-equipped to support their local economy or be seamlessly accepted to Dominican’s bachelor’s degree options should they choose to continue their studies.

Job-Ready Focus

Rooted in experiential learning, Dominican’s program will offer skills-based certificates embedded in the curriculum that allow students to specialize in in-demand areas like nursing assistant, cybersecurity, coding and more.

Beyond the Classroom

Utilizing a city-as-a-campus approach, students can leverage Chicago’s endless opportunities in classroom learning through a team-based, hands-on approach.

Workforce Development Guided by Community Needs

Dominican University recognizes the historic injustices knowingly and unknowingly advanced by higher education institutions in Chicago’s neighborhoods. We believe we can and should do better with any place-based investment in Chicago. Housed at our Chicago campus, DU Labs will build collaborative partnerships in five key areas with residents, businesses, community-based organizations, political officials and faith communities while ensuring we develop solutions alongside the community we serve.

Creating Collaborative Partnerships

Through a four-pronged design that supports and expands community partnerships, DU Labs will facilitate meaningful engagement with surrounding communities.

Guiding Today’s Emerging Workforce

From technology and data analytics to leadership development using trauma-informed approaches, we'll provide employers with dynamic training and corporate upskilling to provide employees with the practical skills they need.

Technology that Meets Critical Needs

Cybersecurity clinics will offer students hands-on experience helping local businesses, nonprofit groups and government agencies prevent, defend against and respond to the growing threats of cybercrime and data breaches.

Crucial Community-Based Experience

With assistance from experienced professors, students will gain valuable skills in analyzing structural and social equity-based issues in health-related fields. They'll be prepared to support their community and provide crucial preventative care needs.

Growing a Diverse Ecosystem

Students will be paired with faculty fellows for semester-long research projects with an emphasis on social entrepreneurship, innovation, and sustainability, preparing them to build mutually beneficial relationships that center community needs.

Diverse Options Fit for All Students

DU Labs will support students of all ages with a wide variety of value-added credentialing opportunities, and graduate and post-baccalaureate certificate programming designed to meet community and labor market demands.

Ensuring Student Success through Wraparound Support

Utilizing Dominican’s hallmark wraparound support model that has promoted lasting success on our River Forest campus, students will receive extensive one-on-one support. Experienced, full-time faculty will craft a personalized success plan and walk alongside students' academic and personal journeys—every step of the way. We’re committed to helping manage the complexities of college life and our program intentionally prioritizes students’ mental, physical, spiritual, and academic health.

A Proactive Approach

A dedicated support team regularly assesses student progress through surveys, flagging any potential challenges and providing targeted follow-up on everything from academic performance to social fit on campus.

Holistic Care

Support extends well beyond the classroom and includes help with basic needs (food, housing, and social service), technological assistance, financial advice, mental health assistance and more.

Flexible Academic Support

Peer and professional tutoring are offered on-site in a range of subjects, including the sciences, math and writing.

Opening the Doors to Education

Dominican University is already recognized by U.S. News and World Report as the #1 school in Illinois on the “Best Value Schools” list, which recognizes schools that offer academic quality while maintaining an affordable cost of attendance. We believe a student’s academic and personal promise should open the doors to higher education—not a family’s ability to pay. This commitment is embedded into the Chicago campus with a model responsive to student economics. Through generous scholarship support, we offer a low-to-no debt model for student achievement.

Student Jobs that Offer More than Just a Paycheck

Students will be connected to work-study job opportunities tied to the curriculum while enrolled in the program.

Empowering Students to Meet the Challenges of Today’s World

We have a history of tearing down barriers to higher education, driving social mobility and embracing students of all backgrounds. Our expansion into Chicago, and specifically the Pilsen community, is a way to thoughtfully carry out our Dominican mission in a new, innovative way that responds to both community aspirations and industry needs while enhancing access for the student population we’ve served for generations. Applications for the Chicago Campus will open in early 2024. To learn more, please contact chicago.campus@dom.edu.

Driven to Make a Difference

Our new Chicago campus will prepare new generations of students to pursue truth, to give compassionate service, and to participate in the creation of a more just and humane world.