DeSales University

What it reported doing in 2024

Desales university is a medium-sized, private, four-year catholic university with a salesian mission administered by the oblates of st. Francis de sales. Students at desales are exposed to catholic teachings but are also afforded the luxury of exploring in an atmosphere of intellectual freedom. It is the mission of desales university to inspire transformative learning through the liberal arts and professional studies by energizing students to be who they are and be that well. The philosophy of desales university is firmly and publicly committed to the principles of roman catholic doctrine and morality. It also fully recognizes that the search for truth requires an atmosphere of intellectual freedom, and that love demands an openness to all that is good. Desales carefully distinguishes between the free pursuit of truth - which it guarantees every member of the campus community - and its own commitment to the teachings of the catholic church. For desales university, christian humanism means that every aspect of human experience is capable of enlightenment by the gospel of jesus christ. This gospel brings light to each dimension of personal existence (physical, intellectual, social, moral, aesthetic, and religious) and every environmental domain (natural world, social institutions, cultural achievements, historical periods, and religious societies). The encounter between the word of god and the concrete world of the human person makes a fully meaningful existence possible. Desales university strives to teach the student what it means to be christian in a salesian way, what it means to embrace one's own life, and what it means to bring this good news to the human family.the desales main campus is located in center valley, pa on 550 acres approximately 50 miles north of philadelphia, pa and 90 miles southwest of New York city. The university offers traditional, online, and hybrid courses and programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Desales university is accredited by the middle states commission on higher education (msche). Several program-specific accreditations are also held by the university including the accreditation review commission on education for the physician assistant (arc-pa), commission on collegiate nursing education (ccne), the commission on accreditation in physical therapy education (capte), the association of collegiate business schools and programs (acbsp), and certified financial planner board registered programs. Desales has also been approved by the Pennsylvania department of education (pde) to participate in the national council for state authorization reciprocity agreements (nc-sara) for postsecondary distance education.the university offers over 50 bachelor's degrees, 12 master's degrees, and 2 doctoral degrees in a wide range of disciplines. Over 40 undergraduate and graduate certificate programs are also offered. With many degree and certificate programs offered via distance education, 22% of students enrolled exclusively in distance education and another 19% enrolled in at least one distance course.as of official census in fall 2024, desales university enrolled a total of 2,986, with 2,172 undergraduate students and 814 graduate students. The student-faculty ratio at desales university is 12:1, and the school has 62% of its classes with fewer than 20 students. The freshman retention rate, an indicator of student satisfaction, is 83%. Within six years, 72% of full-time, first-year students graduate with a bachelor's degree. The most popular undergraduate majors at desales university include nursing, medical studies, biology, psychology, criminal justice, theatre, and business administration. More than 95% of undergraduate, first-time, full-time students receive some form of financial aid.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
• Program expense ratio: 95.6%; rating input score 96
• Fundraising efficiency: $7.11 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Claims monitoring procedures: Fail
  • Requires narrative reports: Fail
  • Conducts field audits: Fail
  • May suspend future funding: Fail
  • Requires financial reports: Fail
  • Conducts site visits: Fail
  • Requires grant agreements: Fail
  • May require repayment: Fail
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 95.8%; rating input score 96; 49th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 1.8%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.77; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.26; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 2%; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 4.1% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings