Here are some facts about Rutgers’ endowment:
How large is Rutgers’ endowment?
Rutgers has a relatively modest endowment. Where many college and university endowments exceed $1 billion, Rutgers’ endowment totals $654 million or approximately $13,000 per student.
How does the university’s endowment compare to that at other schools?
In the most recent survey of endowments released by the National Association of College and University Business Officers, Rutgers ranked 115th nationally in overall size of its endowment. At approximately $13,000 per student, Rutgers’ endowment is far smaller than that of America’s wealthiest colleges and universities, whose endowments can translate into more than $1 million per student.
What is the source of Rutgers’ endowment?
Funds for the endowment come primarily from charitable donations raised through the Rutgers University Foundation. Annual and capital campaigns seek to increase the endowment by soliciting generous gifts from private donors, alumni, and friends of the university.
How is Rutgers’ endowment used?
Often donors place restrictions on how their gifts may be used, designating the funds for student scholarships, named professorships, particular research or teaching programs, new facilities, or other specified uses. Currently, more than 56 percent of Rutgers’ endowment is restricted, and nearly half of those restricted funds are dedicated to student scholarships and fellowships.
What percentage of endowment income is used for tuition assistance?
Last year, approximately $7.4 million in endowment funds was distributed as tuition assistance. That figure represents more than 25 percent of the total endowment income in 2007 and is nearly twice the amount distributed in 1998.
Why is an endowment important for Rutgers’ future?
As state support declines, the endowment has become an increasingly important element in the university’s funding of increased student aid, pioneering research, innovative teaching programs, and new technologies. The endowment is also essential to the university’s ability to attract and retain senior faculty and to maintain a vast physical infrastructure, including classrooms, libraries, and laboratories.
How does the endowment grow?
Endowments grow in two ways: through additional donations and through investment returns. Endowment funds are invested for the long-term in high-quality vehicles likely to provide a steady revenue stream that can sustain programs for future generations of students. However, values and returns do fluctuate based on market conditions.
What guidelines govern endowment investment and expenditure?
Rutgers’ long-term goal is to increase the endowment so it becomes a reliable and steady source of significant income beyond tuition and state appropriations. In 2005, the university adopted a “Statement of Investment Objectives and Guidelines” for managing the endowment. The investment objective is to attain an average annual real return of at least 5 percent over rolling five-year periods. So as to reduce the impact of market fluctuations, the spending policy limits expenditures to 4.5 percent of a 13-quarter average of the endowment’s market value.