University Endowment Size | What It Tells You About Available Scholarship Money

Endowment and financial aid figures checked for fiscal year 2025 and the 2025–26 or 2026–27 academic year, where available.

A university with a $40 billion endowment sounds as though it should be able to hand every student a full scholarship.

That is not how endowments work.

An endowment is made up of invested funds, many of which were donated for a specific purpose. One fund might support undergraduate scholarships. Another may pay for a named professorship, a library collection, medical research or the maintenance of a particular building.

The university normally spends only a small percentage each year so the fund can continue supporting future students.

Endowment size still tells you something useful. A large fund can give a university more room to offer need-based grants, replace loans, support research and absorb rising education costs without relying entirely on tuition.

According to my research for this guide, the endowment number is best treated as a clue, not an answer. You still need to examine how much is restricted, how many students share the resources and what the university has actually promised in its financial aid policy.

Financial aid note: Scholarship policies and income thresholds can change. The figures below are planning references, not guaranteed awards. Use each university’s net price calculator and obtain a personal aid offer before deciding what you can afford.

What is a university endowment?

A university endowment is a collection of assets invested for long-term use.

Those assets may include:

Cash and bonds.
Public company shares.
Private investments.
Property and other real assets.
Funds donated for named scholarships.
Money set aside by the university itself.

The university invests the money and withdraws an approved amount each year. The original capital is generally intended to remain invested indefinitely.

Many institutions use annual spending rates around 5%, although the exact formula differs. Spending may be based on a rolling average of the endowment’s value rather than its value on one particular day.

The 2025 NACUBO-Commonfund Study covered 657 American colleges, universities and affiliated foundations. Participants spent a combined $33.4 billion from their endowments during fiscal year 2025. On average, 47.4% of that spending went towards student financial aid.^[1]

That is a large share, but it also means more than half supported other university purposes.

What a large endowment can tell you

A large endowment may indicate that a university has the capacity to:

Provide more institutional grants.
Meet a larger percentage of demonstrated financial need.
Replace student loans with scholarship funding.
Support students from middle-income families.
Maintain financial aid during weaker economic periods.
Fund research, internships and study-related travel.
Offer emergency grants and student support programs.

The word “may” matters.

A large endowment does not automatically produce a generous award for every student. The institution decides how unrestricted money is allocated, while restricted gifts must generally be used according to donor instructions.

What the headline number does not tell you

How much is restricted

Harvard reports that about 80% of its endowment’s market value is directed by donors towards specified programs, departments or purposes. The university cannot simply move all of that money into undergraduate scholarships.^[2]

How many students share it

A $10 billion endowment serving a relatively small student body may provide more financial capacity per student than a $20 billion fund supporting a much larger university and health system.

What is included in the figure

Universities do not always report endowment figures in precisely the same way.

Penn’s fiscal 2025 total of $24.8 billion included approximately $5.3 billion supporting the University of Pennsylvania Health System. About $19.5 billion supported the university itself.^[3]

Whether aid is need-based or merit-based

Several universities with very large endowments award undergraduate institutional aid entirely or mainly according to financial need. A student with perfect grades may receive no university grant when their family is assessed as able to pay.

Our guide to merit-based versus need-based aid explains why a strong academic record does not always lead to a merit scholarship.

What your personal net price will be

The published tuition is not the same as the amount your family will pay.

A private university with an $85,000 cost of attendance may cost one admitted student $8,000 and another the full advertised amount. Family income, assets, household circumstances and the university’s formula affect the result.

FY2025 endowment sizes at nine private universities

University	Reported FY2025 endowment	What to notice
Harvard University	$56.9 billion	Reported $784 million in financial aid and scholarships during FY2025
Yale University	$44.1 billion	Allocated $378 million of FY2025 endowment income to financial aid
Stanford University	$40.8 billion	Endowment distributions support financial aid, teaching and research
Princeton University	About $36.4 billion	Endowment payout supplies a large portion of university operating revenue
MIT	$27.4 billion	Endowment support helps fund MIT Scholarships and need-blind admission
University of Pennsylvania	$24.8 billion	Total includes funds supporting Penn’s health system
Columbia University	$15.9 billion	Endowment supports financial aid, faculty work and research
Duke University	$12.3 billion	Made up of more than 6,400 individual funds
University of Chicago	$10.9 billion	Supports university operations alongside aid, teaching and research

The endowment values come from the universities’ fiscal 2025 financial or investment reports.^[4] ^[5] ^[6] ^[7] ^[8] ^[9] ^[10] ^[11]

Our data shows that these nine institutions reported combined endowments of approximately $269.5 billion.

That combined number is striking, but it is not a scholarship budget. It includes thousands of restricted and unrestricted funds supporting students, faculty, hospitals, buildings, libraries, research and other institutional commitments.

Nine endowment-supported scholarship and grant examples

The programs below demonstrate what large institutional resources can make possible.

Most are need-based aid programs rather than competitive merit awards. Students usually need to apply for admission and submit the university’s required financial documents.

1. Harvard College financial aid

Harvard College states that families with annual incomes of $100,000 or less, with typical assets, are not expected to pay for billed educational costs.

Beginning with the 2025–26 academic year, its policy provides:

No expected parent contribution for families earning $100,000 or less with typical assets.
At least full tuition coverage for families earning up to $200,000.
Possible aid above $200,000, depending on individual circumstances.

For families in the lower income group, aid may also cover housing, food, fees, health insurance where needed and certain travel costs.^[12]

Harvard says 55% of its undergraduates receive need-based Harvard scholarships.^[13]

This is a useful example of why a private university’s sticker price can be misleading.

2. Yale Scholarship

Yale awards undergraduate institutional aid according to demonstrated financial need rather than academic, athletic or artistic merit.

Its current undergraduate policy states that:

Financial aid offers meet 100% of demonstrated need.
Loans are not required in aid offers.
The policy applies regardless of citizenship or immigration status.
Families earning below $200,000 with typical assets may qualify for no tuition.

The Yale Scholarship is grant funding and does not need to be repaid.^[14]

Yale’s FY2025 figures show that $378 million, or 18% of its endowment allocation, supported financial aid.^[15]

3. Princeton grant aid

Princeton replaced loans in its basic undergraduate financial aid offers with grants.

Under its current policy:

Most families earning up to $150,000 receive aid covering the full cost of attendance.
Most families earning up to $250,000 receive at least full tuition.
Grant aid does not need to be repaid.

The full cost of attendance can include tuition, housing, food, books and personal expenses, depending on the family’s assessed need.^[16]

Princeton estimated that endowment funds specified for financial aid would cover about 71% of its projected FY2025 undergraduate scholarship total.^[17]

That is a direct example of endowment money supporting grant-based aid rather than sitting untouched in an investment account.

4. Stanford Scholarship

Stanford undergraduate aid is based primarily on financial need.

Its current policy provides that families with typical assets generally receive:

No expected parental contribution towards tuition when income is below $150,000.
No expected parental contribution towards tuition, housing or food when income is below $100,000.

Families earning more may still qualify after Stanford reviews their individual circumstances.^[18]

Stanford reports that almost half of its undergraduates receive need-based financial aid. For the Class of 2028, need-based recipients received an average of $74,310 in scholarships and grants from all sources, including an average Stanford Scholarship of $66,259.^[19]

5. MIT Scholarship

The MIT Scholarship is institutional grant aid awarded according to financial need. It does not need to be repaid.

Beginning with the 2025–26 academic year:

Students from families earning under $200,000 with typical assets generally attend tuition-free.
Families earning under $100,000 with typical assets are generally not expected to contribute towards attendance costs.

MIT meets 100% of demonstrated financial need for admitted undergraduates.^[20]

MIT reported that its average need-based undergraduate scholarship was $62,127 in 2024–25. It also said 57% of undergraduates received need-based financial aid.^[8]

6. Columbia grant-based undergraduate aid

Columbia College and Columbia Engineering state that they meet 100% of demonstrated financial need for domestic students and international students admitted with funding.

The initial need-based aid offer uses grants and student work rather than loans.

For families with calculated annual incomes below $66,000 and typical assets, Columbia generally expects no parent contribution.^[21]

Be careful when comparing Columbia programs. The School of General Studies and graduate schools may follow different financial aid rules.

The generous undergraduate policy should not be assumed to apply automatically to every Columbia student.

7. University of Chicago need-based grants

The University of Chicago states that it meets 100% of an admitted undergraduate student’s demonstrated financial need.

Its current admissions information describes need-based aid as grants that do not need to be repaid rather than loans.^[22]

UChicago also offers merit scholarships, but merit awards and need-based packages are separate parts of the funding process.

A student should not assume that being admitted means receiving a merit scholarship. The university can meet assessed financial need while deciding that a family has the resources to pay a substantial share.

8. Duke need-based grants and scholarships

Duke states that it meets 100% of demonstrated financial need for eligible admitted undergraduates.

The university reported issuing $171 million in need-based grants and scholarships during its most recently stated year.^[23]

Duke’s aid office calculates need by subtracting the family contribution it assesses from the university’s cost of attendance. The result determines the maximum need-based aid offer.^[24]

Duke also administers named merit scholarships. Those awards are competitive and should not be confused with the broader need-based aid commitment.

9. Penn’s Quaker Commitment

Penn’s undergraduate aid program meets 100% of demonstrated financial need using grants and work-study rather than loans.

Under the Quaker Commitment:

The initial financial aid package contains no student loans.
The family’s primary home value does not affect aid eligibility.
Families earning up to $200,000 with typical assets are guaranteed aid covering at least full tuition, and may receive more.

The exact offer depends on the family’s financial circumstances.^[25]

Penn’s policy shows why families should calculate net price before assuming a private university is unaffordable.

Read why private universities are not always more expensive than public ones for a broader comparison of advertised cost and actual aid.

These are not nine ordinary merit scholarships

The word “scholarship” can mean different things.

At some universities, an institutional scholarship is simply the grant portion of a need-based financial aid offer. It is not awarded because the student won an essay competition or had the highest grade-point average.

The nine examples above include:

Need-based university scholarships.
Grant-only financial aid commitments.
No-loan policies.
Income-based tuition guarantees.

Several of these institutions provide little or no undergraduate merit aid.

The logic is that admission already establishes academic strength. Institutional funding is then directed towards students whose families cannot meet the university’s assessed cost.

Endowment size per student can be more revealing

The total endowment gives you only part of the picture.

Suppose two universities have the following figures:

University	Endowment	Students supported	Endowment per student
University A	$10 billion	10,000	$1 million
University B	$20 billion	50,000	$400,000

University B has twice the total endowment. University A has far more endowment value relative to its student population.

This remains an incomplete comparison because:

Not all funds support students.
Graduate and undergraduate funding may differ.
Medical centres can be included in some reports.
Restricted funds cannot be moved freely.
Universities use different spending formulas.

Endowment per student is useful for asking better questions. It is not a prediction of your scholarship offer.

Why universities do not spend the whole fund

A common argument is that a wealthy university should simply withdraw more money immediately.

Universities generally design endowments to support students and academic programs indefinitely.

If a university spent 15% or 20% each year, a few current classes might benefit greatly. The fund could then shrink after weak investment years, leaving future students with less support.

A simplified example shows the problem:

Endowment	Annual withdrawal	Amount spent
$1 billion	5%	$50 million
$1 billion	10%	$100 million
$1 billion	20%	$200 million

The 20% withdrawal provides more money now. It also requires exceptionally strong investment returns simply to prevent the fund from shrinking.

From my experience reviewing university financial reports for this guide, the most confusing point is the difference between the endowment’s market value and its annual spendable payout. A $40 billion endowment does not create a $40 billion annual budget.

Why donor restrictions matter

An endowment is often made up of thousands of individual funds.

One donor might state that investment income must support:

Engineering students from a named state.
A professor of medieval history.
Library acquisitions in East Asian studies.
Graduate research in cancer treatment.
Undergraduate students with financial need.

The university is not generally free to take money intended for cancer research and use it for a business student’s tuition.

This is why a university can have a huge endowment while still asking donors to create new scholarship funds.

Why a smaller endowment can still produce a good aid offer

A university does not need a $20 billion endowment to provide useful scholarships.

A smaller institution may:

Direct a larger share of its annual budget towards tuition discounts.
Use unrestricted donations for merit awards.
Offer scholarships funded from current revenue.
Compete aggressively for applicants with strong grades.
Receive government or foundation support.

Some colleges use merit aid to attract students who might otherwise attend a more selective institution.

A university with a large endowment may offer no merit scholarship at all. A less wealthy college may offer the same student $25,000 a year.

Our article on private universities offering generous aid packages explains why the most famous endowments are not the only ones worth investigating.

How to use endowment data when building a college list

Step one: check the financial aid promise

Look for clear language about whether the institution:

Meets full demonstrated need.
Includes loans in the initial offer.
Provides need-blind admission.
Offers aid to international students.
Provides merit scholarships.

Step two: use the net price calculator

Enter realistic income and asset information.

The result is only an estimate, but it is more useful than comparing tuition prices alone.

Step three: separate grants from loans

A $60,000 aid package may include:

$40,000 in grants.
$5,000 in work-study.
$15,000 in loans.

Only the grant portion reduces the price without creating repayment obligations.

Step four: check renewal conditions

Ask whether the funding continues for four years and what could cause it to change.

Changes may result from:

Family income increasing.
Assets changing.
A sibling leaving university.
Failure to submit aid forms.
Unsatisfactory academic progress.
Moving from undergraduate to graduate study.

Step five: compare the full cost

Tuition is only one part of attendance.

Include:

Housing.
Food.
Health insurance.
Books.
Travel.
Personal expenses.
Course and laboratory fees.

Our breakdown of what private university financial aid actually covers can help you find costs missing from the headline scholarship amount.

Questions to ask a financial aid office

Does the university meet 100% of demonstrated financial need?
Does the initial package include student or parent loans?
Is institutional aid need-based, merit-based or both?
Is the scholarship guaranteed for four years?
How is home equity treated?
Does having another child in college affect the calculation?
Can the award increase when family circumstances worsen?
What happens if outside scholarships are received?
Does aid cover housing, food and health insurance?
Are international applicants considered for institutional funding?

Send difficult questions by email where possible. A written reply gives you something to review when comparing offers later.

Institutional aid and external scholarships work differently

Endowment-funded aid usually comes directly from the university.

External scholarships come from organisations including:

Community foundations.
Employers.
Professional associations.
Religious organisations.
Charities.

A university may reduce part of its institutional aid after you receive an outside award. Others may first reduce work-study, summer savings expectations or loans.

Ask about the university’s outside scholarship policy before assuming two awards can be added together without adjustment.

See institutional versus external scholarships for a closer explanation of how the two funding sources interact.

Common myths about university endowments

“A $50 billion endowment means $50 billion is available to spend”

The money is invested, and much of it is restricted. Universities withdraw only an approved portion annually.

“The wealthiest university will give me the largest scholarship”

Your award depends on the university’s aid policy and its assessment of your family finances.

“Large endowments always mean merit scholarships”

Several wealthy universities award undergraduate institutional aid only according to need.

“A smaller endowment means poor financial aid”

Smaller institutions may use current revenue and tuition discounts to provide competitive merit awards.

“Every school inside a university follows the same policy”

Undergraduate colleges, graduate schools, medical schools and continuing education programs may use different aid rules.

“A full-tuition scholarship makes college free”

Housing, food, insurance, books and travel can still leave a large bill.

“Endowment growth immediately increases next year’s scholarship”

Spending formulas are designed to smooth gains and losses over several years. A strong investment return does not normally flow straight into the following semester’s aid budget.

What endowment size really tells you

A university’s endowment tells you about financial capacity.

It does not tell you exactly how much scholarship money you will receive.

Large endowments can support no-loan aid, lower parent contributions and grants covering tuition, housing or other attendance costs. The nine institutions in this guide show how invested funds can make expensive private education affordable for some families.

The same universities may charge the full price to another family.

Look at the endowment, but do not stop there. Check whether aid is based on need or merit. Read the renewal rules. Run the net price calculator and separate grants from loans.

The number that matters most is not the university’s total wealth.

It is the amount your family will actually be asked to pay.

University Endowment Size | What It Tells You About Available Scholarship Money | 9 Scholarships