Key Takeaways
- • MIT's unitized pool of endowment and other funds returned 10.3 percent for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, as measured using valuations received within one month of fiscal year end, according to MIT News and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Investment Management Company (MITIMCo).
- • MIT's endowment totaled $29.2 billion at fiscal year end, excluding pledges, and the 10-year annualized return through June 30, 2026 was 11.7 percent.
- • The endowment supports about half of undergraduate tuition and underpins the Institute's need-blind, full-need admissions policy.
- • In fiscal 2026, MIT enhanced undergraduate aid so families with incomes below $200,000 and typical assets have tuition fully covered, and families below $100,000 owe nothing.
- • The Report of the Treasurer for fiscal 2026 was published the same day, showing net results of $494.4 million according to a publisher summary.
Summary
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Investment Management Company (MITIMCo), the MIT unit that manages the Institute's endowment, retirement, and operating funds, announced that MIT's unitized pool of endowment and other funds generated an investment return of 10.3 percent during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026. The figure is based on valuations received within one month of fiscal year end. At year end, MIT's endowment funds totaled $29.2 billion, excluding pledges. Over the ten years ending June 30, 2026, the pool generated an annualized return of 11.7 percent.
The endowment is the foundation of MIT's finances and is built on gifts from alumni and friends over more than a century. State law requires MIT to hold each endowed gift as a permanent fund, preserve its purchasing power, and spend it as the original donor directed. Most endowment funds are restricted to specific purposes, and the Institute uses the bulk of the income to support financial aid, research, and education. A publisher summary notes that roughly 80 percent of the endowment is restricted.
The endowment funds about half of undergraduate tuition, which supports MIT's need-blind and full-need admissions policy. In fiscal 2026, MIT expanded undergraduate aid so that families with incomes below $200,000 and typical assets have tuition fully covered by scholarships, and families below $100,000 with typical assets owe nothing. MIT reported that 88 percent of the Class of 2026 graduated with no debt. In 2025-26, the average need-based undergraduate scholarship was $66,155, and 58 percent of undergraduates received need-based aid. MIT also said parents of aided undergraduates now pay, on average, 10 percent less on a real basis than at the end of the Great Recession.
MIT stated that the endowment also helps it fund research beyond what it receives from outside sponsors, with campus-based research funding exceeding the amount provided by the U.S. government and other sponsors. The Report of the Treasurer for fiscal 2026, which details annual financial performance, was released publicly the same day.
The endowment is the foundation of MIT's finances and is built on gifts from alumni and friends over more than a century. State law requires MIT to hold each endowed gift as a permanent fund, preserve its purchasing power, and spend it as the original donor directed. Most endowment funds are restricted to specific purposes, and the Institute uses the bulk of the income to support financial aid, research, and education. A publisher summary notes that roughly 80 percent of the endowment is restricted.
The endowment funds about half of undergraduate tuition, which supports MIT's need-blind and full-need admissions policy. In fiscal 2026, MIT expanded undergraduate aid so that families with incomes below $200,000 and typical assets have tuition fully covered by scholarships, and families below $100,000 with typical assets owe nothing. MIT reported that 88 percent of the Class of 2026 graduated with no debt. In 2025-26, the average need-based undergraduate scholarship was $66,155, and 58 percent of undergraduates received need-based aid. MIT also said parents of aided undergraduates now pay, on average, 10 percent less on a real basis than at the end of the Great Recession.
MIT stated that the endowment also helps it fund research beyond what it receives from outside sponsors, with campus-based research funding exceeding the amount provided by the U.S. government and other sponsors. The Report of the Treasurer for fiscal 2026, which details annual financial performance, was released publicly the same day.
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