Education

This Private University Is Quietly Sitting on $50.9 Billion

Graduation cap university or college degree on US dollars banknotes pile. Education expense budget plan of money saving, student loan or debt, personal loan, scholarship for studying abroad concept.
Pla2na / Shutterstock.com

The end of the year is a time when many people are thinking about making year-end donations for tax purposes. College and university endowments are a popular choice, especially for donors of substantial means. This article will rank the top private institutions of higher education by the total size of their endowed funds. See if your alma mater is on the list, and if not and you happen to be a multi-billionaire, maybe you’ll donate enough to put it there!

24/7 Wall St. Insights

  • Endowments can provide a stable, long-term financial base for educational institutions. 
  • Some of the oldest universities in the country have the largest endowments, which have in some cases had a couple of centuries to accumulate. 

What is an Endowment?

Money banknote and blue card with text ENDOWMENT FUND
Teacher Photo / Shutterstock.com

An endowment is a fund made up of donated money that can indefinitely fund the educational mission of a college or university. Endowments are legally structured so that they can only be used for an intended purpose. Payouts are made from the profits of the investment so that the endowment can be a permanent source of income. Endowments are often used to fund scholarships, professorships, research, and public service projects.

The Good and the Bad of Endowments

AaronAmat / iStock via Getty Images

An advantage of this funding structure to a college is that it can give the institution greater stability and academic freedom as it is not as dependent on current and new donors. Wealthy people often make large donations to institutional endowments, which give them tax benefits and preserve their legacy for generations to come.

However, endowments can be controversial when an institution seems to favor ideological positions that influential segments of the population oppose. Endowments also have restrictions on how they can be used, so they may be inaccessible to help out at a time when an institution has significant needs in other areas, which it may fund by raising tuition, cutting staff and operating expenses, or putting the squeeze on new donors. 

16. Rice University

aimintang / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $7.8 billion
  • Location: Houston, TX
  • Founded: 1912
  • Enrollment: 4,574
  • Famous graduates: Howard Hughes,  John Doerr, Peggy Whitson

15. Dartmouth College

kickstand / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $8 billion
  • Location: Hannover, NH
  • Founded: 1769
  • Enrollment: 4,447
  • Famous graduates: Robert Frost, Dr. Suess, Mindy Kaling

14. Johns Hopkins University

Andrea Izzotti / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $8.2 billion
  • Location: Baltimore, MD
  • Founded: 1876
  • Enrollment: 6,090
  • Famous graduates: Mike Bloomberg, Woodrow Wilson, Wes Craven

13. University of Chicago

janniswerner / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $8.6 billion
  • Location: Chicago, IL
  • Founded: 1890
  • Enrollment: 7,489
  • Famous graduates: Carl Sagan, Susan Sontag, Roger Ebert

12. Cornell University

kickstand / E+ via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $9.3 billion
  • Location: Ithaca, NY
  • Founded: 1865
  • Enrollment: 16,071
  • Famous graduates: Bill Nye, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Christopher Reeve

11. Vanderbilt University

SeanPavonePhoto / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $10.9 billion
  • Location: Nashville, TN
  • Founded: 1873
  • Enrollment: 7,152
  • Famous graduates: James Patterson, Fred Dalton Thompson, Muhammad Yunus

10. Emory University

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Endowments: $11.2 billion
  • Location: Atlanta, GA
  • Founded: 1836
  • Enrollment: 7,359
  • Famous graduates: Sam Nunn, Newt Gingrich, Jimmy Carter

9. Washington University in St. Louis

JByard / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $12.3 billion
  • Location: St. Louis
  • Founded: 1853
  • Enrollment: 8,267
  • Famous graduates: Peter Sarsgaard, C.P. Wang, Ann Hirsh

8. Duke University

BSPollard / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $12.7 billion
  • Location: Durham, NC
  • Founded: 1838
  • Enrollment: 6,488
  • Famous graduates: Tim Cook, Melinda French Gates, Richard Nixon

7. University of Notre Dame

Cheri Alguire / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $17.1 billion
  • Location: Notre Dame, IN
  • Founded: 1842
  • Enrollment: 6,488
  • Famous graduates: Condoleezza Rice, Phil Donahue, Nicholas Sparks

6. University of Pennsylvania

f11photo / iStock via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $20.7 billion
  • Location: Philadelphia, PA
  • Founded: 1755
  • Enrollment: 9,995
  • Famous graduates: Elon Musk, John Legend, Noam Chomsky

5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

peterspiro / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $24.6 billion
  • Location: Cambridge, MA
  • Founded: 1861
  • Enrollment: 4,576
  • Famous graduates: Kofi Annan, Buzz Aldrin, Richard Feynman 

4. Princeton University

aimintang / E+ via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $35 billion
  • Location: Princeton, NJ
  • Founded: 1746
  • Enrollment: 5,671
  • Famous graduates: Jeff Bezos, Michelle Obama, Woodrow Wilson

3. Stanford University

JasonDoiy / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $36.3 billion
  • Location: Stanford, CA
  • Founded: 1885
  • Enrollment: 8,054
  • Famous alumni: John Steinbeck, Tiger Woods, John F. Kennedy

2. Yale University

sainaniritu / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $41.4 billion
  • Location: New Haven, CT
  • Founded: 1701
  • Enrollment: 6,818
  • Famous alumni: Maryl Streep, George H.W. Bush, Hillary Clinton

1. Harvard University

DenisTangneyJr / iStock via Getty Images
  • Endowments: $50.9 billion
  • Location: Cambridge, MA
  • Founded: 1636
  • Enrollment: 7,110
  • Famous alumni: Natalie Portman, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Damon

Is Your Money Earning the Best Possible Rate? (Sponsor)

Let’s face it: If your money is just sitting in a checking account, you’re losing value every single day. With most checking accounts offering little to no interest, the cash you worked so hard to save is gradually being eroded by inflation.

However, by moving that money into a high-yield savings account, you can put your cash to work, growing steadily with little to no effort on your part. In just a few clicks, you can set up a high-yield savings account and start earning interest immediately.

There are plenty of reputable banks and online platforms that offer competitive rates, and many of them come with zero fees and no minimum balance requirements. Click here to see if you’re earning the best possible rate on your money!

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.