Vanderbilt reported an annual endowment of $10.2 billion in its 2024 financial report, up from $9.7 billion in 2023. The increase comes after two subsequent years of declines.
Vice Chancellor for Investments Anders Hall attributed the growth in fiscal 2024 to a diverse slate of investments as well as donor gifts and contributions to the Dare to Grow fundraising campaign. He said the university’s total assets are the largest they have ever been.
“Over the long-term, say the last decade, several asset classes have done really well. Some of the strong positive contributors [to the endowment] have been global equities, hedged strategies, fixed income and natural resources,” Hall said in an email to The Hustler. “Private capital has been the biggest driver, as sub-portfolios, such as venture capital and growth equity, have done very well over that period.”
According to Hall, the university also prioritized allocating funds toward capital projects — such as the renovation of shared campus buildings, improvement of student facilities and expansion of the residential college program — investing $402 million in such activities compared to $294 million in fiscal 2023. Hall believes this investment represents the university’s goal with the Dare to Grow campaign of promoting innovative future development across the university.
“Vanderbilt’s Dare to Grow campaign, which launched publicly in 2023, exceeded its $3.2 billion goal almost two years ahead of its target date,” Hall said. “The financial impact in fiscal 2024 was significant, but it will grow over the coming years as the pledges that have been made will be realized in actual gifts.”
Endowments among peer institutions similarly saw positive growth, including Brown University, The University of Virginia and Yale University with growth rates of 11.3%, 7.5% and 5.7%, respectively.
Chancellor Daniel Diermeier expressed his satisfaction with the growth of the endowment in his opening letter of the report, while advocating for Vanderbilt’s recent moves to expand campus locations to New York and Florida.
“We are proud of our accomplishments, but we are not satisfied. As we seek to boldly extend Vanderbilt’s impact and reach, we are exploring opportunities to expand our presence in the U.S. and abroad,” Diermeier said in the letter.
