DeVry University has been the subject of numerous investigations and lawsuits alleging a variety of false or deceptive practices. Some of the cases led to multi-million dollar settlements, though DeVry continued to deny the allegations. In 2014, accumulated
student loan debt from DeVry University and Keller, its graduate school, was about $12.1 billion.
1990s In March 1995, DeVry's ability to grant U.S. degrees through its
Calgary facilities was discussed during a session of the
Alberta Legislative Assembly. Therein,
Grant Mitchell—then the
Leader of the Opposition for the
Alberta Liberal Party—accused the
Premier of Alberta,
Ralph Klein, of maintaining a
conflict of interest with DeVry through his relationship with John Ballheim, who was at the time an executive at DeVry serving as both the president of DeVry's Calgary campus and as a member of the Premier's special advisory council on postsecondary education. Klein denied any conflict of interest. In 1996, students of DeVry's
Toronto campus filed a
class-action suit of C$400 million (C$ in .) claiming poor educational quality and job preparation; the suit was dismissed on technical grounds.
2000s In November 2000, Afshin Zarinebaf, Ali Mousavi, and another graduate of one of DeVry University's Chicago-area campuses filed a class-action lawsuit accusing DeVry of widespread deception, unlawful business practices, and false advertising, alleging that students were not being prepared for high-tech jobs. The lawsuit contributed to a 20% slide in the company's stock. The suit was not certified and the case was resolved for less than
US$25,000 (US$ in ) in June 2006. This decision was opposed by the
Alberta New Democrats (sitting in
opposition), the
University of Calgary Faculty Association, the
Canadian Federation of Students, and the
Canadian Association of University Teachers. In April 2007, the states of New York, Illinois, and Missouri settled with three institutions that were participating in questionable student-loan practices. DeVry,
Career Education Corporation, and
Washington University in St. Louis were involved with the settlement. DeVry agreed to refund US$88,122 (US$ in ) it received in
revenue sharing from
Citibank to students. In 2008, DeVry was accused of filing false claims and statements about recruitment pay and performance to the government of the United States.
2010s DeVry was one of the universities highlighted in the 2018 documentary
Fail State, which followed several stories of students who struggled with student loan debt after attending for-profit colleges. Murray Hastie, an
Iraq War veteran with
post-traumatic stress disorder, told his story about how he ended up with $50,000 in
student loan debt after his experience at DeVry. In January 2013, a lawsuit was filed by a former manager at DeVry which alleged that the college bribed students for positive performance reviews and worked around federal regulations on for-profit colleges. In April 2013, the
attorneys general of Illinois and Massachusetts issued
subpoenas to DeVry to investigate for violations of federal law and filing false information about loans, grants, and guarantees. In July 2014, DeVry stated that the office of the
New York Attorney General was investigating whether the company's marketing violated laws against false advertising. In March 2016, the
Veterans Administration reprimanded DeVry over allegations of deceptive marketing practices made by the
Federal Trade Commission and suspended DeVry University from its "Principles of Excellence" status under the
G.I. Bill. On December 15, 2016, the Federal Trade Commission settled a US$100 million suit against DeVry, which alleged that DeVry's advertisements deceived consumers about the likelihood that students would find jobs in their fields of study, and would earn more than those graduating with bachelor's degrees from other colleges or universities. Students were eligible for a refund who: enrolled in a bachelor's or associate degree program at DeVry University between January 1, 2008, and October 1, 2015; paid at least US$5,000 with cash, loans, or military benefits; did not get debt or loan forgiveness as part of this settlement; and completed at least one
class credit. Separately, on June 16, 2016, two former DeVry students filed a demand for
arbitration with the
American Arbitration Association. DeVry responded by suing the students, claiming the dispute belongs in court and not in arbitration. In May 2017, the
Higher Learning Commission designated DeVry "under governmental investigation" as a result of a Massachusetts Attorney General investigation alleging "fraudulent or deceptive practices". In September 2017, the Higher Learning Commission removed this designation after DeVry negotiated a settlement. In August 2018, the
Associated Press reported that according to
United States Department of Education documents, DeVry received more than 3,600 (over 15%) of the 24,000 federal fraud complaints lodged against for-profit colleges between January 20, 2017, and April 30, 2018. This is in conjunction with a "nearly 20 percent" decrease in enrollment in the last year. In March 2019, former DeVry student Eric Luongo was invited to testify before the House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies about his experience at the university. Luongo, a disabled veteran, said he thought he would attend DeVry for free by using his
GI Bill benefits. Luongo alleged that he was coerced into filling out federal loan paperwork and signing promissory notes. The result was that the veteran was left with over $100,000 in debt and a degree in graphic design with which he failed to procure gainful employment.
2020s In 2022, DeVry University was one of 153 institutions included in student loan cancellation due to alleged fraud. The class action was brought by a group of more than 200,000 student borrowers, assisted by the Project on Predatory Student Lending, part of the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School. A settlement was approved in August 2022, stating that the schools on the list included "substantial misconduct by the listed schools, whether credibly alleged or in some instances proven." In April 2023, the Supreme Court rejected a challenge to the settlement and allowed to proceed the debt cancellation due to alleged fraud. ==Alumni==