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Lists / 21 Colleges with the Largest Endowments

21 Colleges with the Largest Endowments

Created by College Confidential

An endowment is the total value of a school's investments, donations, and assets. They are collected through donations made to a school. An endowment does not necessarily indicate the quality of a school, but is an indicator of how much money a college can afford to invest in programs, facilities and resources to benefit the school and its students. Here is a list of the top 20 schools with the biggest endowments.

Stanford University

  • Stanford University
    Stanford, CA • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $63,936
    Out-of-State
    $63,936
    Acceptance Rate4%

    • Stanford has an endowment of $37.8 billion. Stanford's endowment is used to support the university's focus on education, research, affordability, inclusion, and outreach.

    Vanderbilt University

  • Vanderbilt University
    Nashville, TN • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $63,946
    Out-of-State
    $63,946
    Acceptance Rate7%

    • Vanderbilt focuses on using their endowment to provide as much support for students, faculty, and programs as possible. This means spending a significant portion of their endowment funds on scholarships, grants, and other forms of financial aid. Vanderbilt has an endowment of 6.9 billion.

    The Ohio State University

  • The Ohio State University
    Columbus, OH • 4-Year, Public
    In-State
    $12,485
    Out-of-State
    $36,722
    Acceptance Rate53%

    • Ohio State uses its endowment funds to further the school’s mission of education, research, knowledge creation, and community service. Ohio State has an endowment of 5.2 billion.

    Brown University

  • Brown University
    Providence, RI • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $68,230
    Out-of-State
    $68,230
    Acceptance Rate6%

    • Brown’s endowment funds are used to provide significant financial aid, support research and labs, academic programs, and more. Brown has an endowment of 4.7 billion.

    Harvard University

  • Harvard University
    Cambridge, MA • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $59,076
    Out-of-State
    $59,076
    Acceptance Rate3%

    • Harvard primarily uses its endowment on financial aid and in 2021 the university used $597 million for financial aid and scholarships. Harvard has an endowment total of 41.9 billion.

    Yale University

  • Yale University
    New Haven, CT • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $64,700
    Out-of-State
    $64,700
    Acceptance Rate5%

    • Yale uses its endowment to fund student scholarships, provide faculty salaries, and other expenses. Yale’s endowment is 31.1 Billion.

    Princeton University

  • Princeton University
    Princeton, NJ • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $59,710
    Out-of-State
    $59,710
    Acceptance Rate6%

    • Princeton’s endowment is used to fund programs and research to benefit students and faculty. This includes financial aid, award winning research, research libraries, and more. Princeton has an endowment of 25.9 Billion.

    Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Cambridge, MA • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $60,156
    Out-of-State
    $60,156
    Acceptance Rate4%

    • MIT primarily uses its endowment to support research done by students and faculty by providing resources that ensure the most cutting-edge research can be achieved. MIT’s endowment is 18.3 billion.

    University of Notre Dame

  • University of Notre Dame
    Notre Dame, IN • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $62,693
    Out-of-State
    $62,693
    Acceptance Rate13%

    • Notre Dame prioritizes the use of its endowment to fund scholarships and fellowships as well as to provide academic, religious and student programs. It also uses endowment funds to support faculty chairs, libraries, athletics, and general operations. Notre Dame has an endowment of 14.9 billion.

    University of Pennsylvania

  • University of Pennsylvania
    Philadelphia, PA • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $66,104
    Out-of-State
    $66,104
    Acceptance Rate7%

    • University of Pennsylvania uses its endowment to fund instruction, health care, student aid, and research. University of Pennsylvania’s endowment is 14.8 billion.

    Texas A&M University

  • Texas A&M University
    College Station, TX • 4-Year, Public
    In-State
    $12,413
    Out-of-State
    $40,607
    Acceptance Rate62%

    • Texas A&M University has an endowment of 13.59 billion.

    University of Michigan

  • University of Michigan
    Ann Aarbor, MI • 4-Year, Public
    In-State
    $16,736
    Out-of-State
    $55,658
    Acceptance Rate18%

    • University of Michigan’s endowment is a collection of over 12,000 individual funds that are used to keep the university affordable by providing substantial financial assistance for students, fund academic programs, research, and other activities. University of Michigan’s endowment is 12.3 billion.

    Columbia University

  • Columbia University
    New Yrok, NY • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $68,400
    Out-of-State
    $68,400
    Acceptance Rate4%

    • Columbia uses its endowment funds on supporting students through financial aid including scholarships, research, faculty, and more. Columbia University’s endowment is 11.2 billion.

    Emory University

  • Emory University
    Atlanta, GA • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $60,774
    Out-of-State
    $60,774
    Acceptance Rate11%

    • Emory University has an endowment of 9.1 billion.

    Washington University in St. Louis

  • Washington University in St. Louis
    St. Louis, MO • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $62,982
    Out-of-State
    $62,982
    Acceptance Rate11%

    • Washington University in St. Louis uses their endowment for faculty and staff salaries, financial aid, research, special programs, and more. Washington University in St. Louis has an endowment of 8.5 billion.

    University of Chicago

  • University of Chicago
    Chicago, IL • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $65,619
    Out-of-State
    $65,619
    Acceptance Rate5%

    • In 2021, University of Chicago had its highest rate of return on their endowment since 2000. The university uses its endowment to support students, faculty, provide financial aid support, and more. University of Chicago’s endowment is 8.2 billion.

    Rice University

  • Rice University
    Houston, TX • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $58,128
    Out-of-State
    $58,128
    Acceptance Rate9%

    • 40% of Rice’s operating budget comes from endowments. Rice university has an endowment of 6.3 billion.

    Johns Hopkins University

  • Johns Hopkins University
    Baltimore, MD • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $62,840
    Out-of-State
    $62,840
    Acceptance Rate7%

    • Johns Hopkins University has an endowment of 6.3 billion.

    Dartmouth College

  • Dartmouth College
    Hanover, NH • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $65,511
    Out-of-State
    $65,511
    Acceptance Rate6%

    • In coordination with the school’s commitment to meet 100% of demonstrated financial need, Dartmouth uses a large portion of its endowment on financial aid programs including scholarships. Dartmouth has an endowment of 5.98 billion.

    University of Southern California

  • University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA • 4-Year, Private
    In-State
    $68,237
    Out-of-State
    $68,237
    Acceptance Rate13%

    • USC’s endowment funds help support long-term growth of programs that will help students, programs, and activities. USC has an endowment of 5.7 billion.

    The University of Texas at Austin

  • The University of Texas at Austin
    Austin, TX • 4-Year, Public
    In-State
    $11,758
    Out-of-State
    $41,070
    Acceptance Rate31%

    • The University of Texas at Austin has an endowment of 4.7 billion.

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