Universities
Universities is a data page on the Education desk of Glassbox Auditing. Leading universities from IPEDS and the College Scorecard: admissions, graduation, tuition, net price by family income, student debt and repayment, faculty, finances, endowments, research and graduates' earnings, with their court cases. Universities are large employers, research contractors and endowment investors.
Last updated: .
What is on this page today?
- Brown University charged families earning under $30,000 the least after grants: $39 a year (2025 Scorecard file) — Brown University $4,702 less than in 2022 · lowest of 23 tracked universities reporting 2025; first-time, full-time students receiving federal aid (U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, 30 Dec 2025)
- Economics graduates of Duke University earned the most four years after finishing: median $161,149 — Bachelor's graduates at the 25 tracked universities reporting this field, Scorecard 2025 file, federally aided students working and not enrolled (U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, 30 Dec 2025)
- Mathematics graduates of Duke University earned the most four years after finishing of any bachelor's program at a tracked university: median $297,029 — Highest of 689 bachelor's programs with reported earnings, Scorecard 2025 file; small cohorts are suppressed by the Department (U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, 30 Dec 2025)
- Stanford University admitted the smallest share of applicants of the tracked universities: 3.6% (Scorecard 2024 file) — Stanford University -0.3 points on 2023 · lowest of 26 tracked universities reporting 2024 (U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, 30 Dec 2024)
- Columbia University's graduates carried the most federal debt of the tracked universities: median $20,500 (2024) — Columbia University unchanged on 2023 · highest of 26 tracked universities reporting 2024 (U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, 30 Dec 2024)
- UCLA enrolled the most students of the tracked universities: 49,942 in fall 2024 — UCLA +1.1% on 2023 · highest of 27 tracked universities reporting 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 30 Dec 2024)
- Johns Hopkins University grew fastest over ten years: enrolment up 50% to 39,805 students in fall 2024 — Headcount against the nearest year on file ten years earlier · 5 fastest of the tracked universities (IPEDS institution surveys, 30 Dec 2024)
- Harvard University endowment: $53.2B at the end of fiscal 2024, +4.9% on a year earlier — $50.7B in fiscal 2023 · largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Yale University endowment: $41.4B at the end of fiscal 2024, +1.7% on a year earlier — $40.7B in fiscal 2023 · 2nd largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Stanford University endowment: $37.6B at the end of fiscal 2024, +3.1% on a year earlier — $36.5B in fiscal 2023 · 3rd largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Princeton University endowment: $33.4B at the end of fiscal 2024, +0.1% on a year earlier — $33.4B in fiscal 2023 · 4th largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology endowment: $24.6B at the end of fiscal 2024, +4.8% on a year earlier — $23.5B in fiscal 2023 · 5th largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Johns Hopkins University research spending: $4.19B in fiscal 2024, +6.2% on a year earlier — $3.95B in fiscal 2023 · largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology research spending: $2.14B in fiscal 2024, +8.0% on a year earlier — $1.98B in fiscal 2023 · 2nd largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- UC San Francisco research spending: $1.58B in fiscal 2024, +1.4% on a year earlier — $1.56B in fiscal 2023 · 3rd largest of 27 tracked universities reporting fiscal 2024 (IPEDS institution surveys, 29 Jun 2024)
- Harvard University and Princeton University had the highest six-year graduation rate of the tracked universities: 98.0% (2023) — Harvard University +1.0 points on 2022 · highest of 26 tracked universities reporting 2023 (IPEDS institution surveys, 30 Dec 2023)
- Brown University charged the most tuition and fees: $68,230 for in-state undergraduates (2023) — Brown University +4.9% on 2022 · highest of 26 tracked universities reporting 2023 (IPEDS institution surveys, 30 Dec 2023)
Where does the data come from?
Items on this page come from U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard; IPEDS institution surveys. Each item links to its own source. All sources, how items are checked.
What does this page lead to?
- Companies & Research (Education): University research spending, largely federal grants, produces the patents, start-ups and company partnerships that page tracks. (moves the same way; years; sector scale) Source: NSF Awards API (research grants by organisation).
- Federal Contractors (People & Money): Johns Hopkins, MIT and the University of California are among the largest recipients of federal research money (USAspending), much of it defense and health work, so federal awards flow straight into their budgets. (moves the same way; months; sector scale) Source: USAspending.gov (U.S. Treasury): federal contracts, grants and loans by recipient.
- Household Finances (Macro): Tuition and net price set how much families borrow; the Scorecard reports each university's student debt and repayment. (moves the same way; years; economy scale) Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
- Courts & Lawsuits (Companies): Universities license and enforce patents against companies (Caltech against Apple and Broadcom), so their court cases can reach company earnings; claims are allegations until ruled on. (either way, depending on the cause; years; company scale) Source: CourtListener (Free Law Project), RECAP federal dockets and opinions.
- Students (Immigration): Leading universities enrol many international students, especially in graduate programs, so their admissions set much of the foreign-student flow. (moves the same way; months; sector scale) Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).
- Budget & Spending (Macro): The 2025 tax law raised the excise tax on the largest endowments' investment income to as much as 8%, so endowment returns now add more to federal revenue. (moves the same way; yearly; economy scale) Source: IPEDS institution surveys via the Urban Institute (ODC-By).
What feeds this page?
- AI Researchers (AI): Universities train most AI researchers and employ many; when labs hire faculty and graduate students away, university research groups lose staff while companies gain them. (either way, depending on the cause; years; sector scale) Source: OpenAlex (scholarly works).
- Activism & Safety (Domestic Intelligence): Campus protests in 2023-24 were followed by congressional hearings, university presidents' resignations and, in 2025, federal funding freezes at several universities. (either way, depending on the cause; months; sector scale) Source: Crowd Counting Consortium (Harvard Ash Center / UConn), CC0 1.0.
- Companies & Research (Education): Every STTR award requires a university or research-lab partner, so company awards bring research money and licensing income to the partner universities. (moves the same way; years; sector scale) Source: SBIR.gov award data (SBIR and STTR awards, U.S. Small Business Administration).
- Students (Immigration): International students often pay full tuition, so their enrolment supports universities' tuition revenue, most at private research universities and large public flagships. (moves the same way; months; sector scale) Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).
- Institutions & Leaders (People & Money): A university's president and trustees approve its tuition, endowment payout and research budget, so a change at the top changes who decides how that money is spent. (either way, depending on the cause; 1-3 years; sector scale) Source: IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file data (the IRS's public archives).
- Charity & Political Links (People & Money): Company and family foundations are among universities' largest donors, so their grants feed endowments, scholarships and research budgets. (moves the same way; 1-3 years; sector scale) Source: IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file data (the IRS's public archives).
- Investment Reports (People & Money): Universities spend about 4-5% of their endowment each year under payout rules that average past values, so endowment gains reach aid and research budgets over the following years. (moves the same way; 1-3 years; sector scale) Source: IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file data (the IRS's public archives).
- Nobel Prizes (World Powers): Laureates are counted by the university they worked at when awarded; prize-winning faculty help universities win research grants and draw students. (moves the same way; years; sector scale) Source: Nobel Prize Outreach, Nobel Prize Master Data API 2.0 (CC0).