Educational Endowments Returned -0.3 Percent in FY2012, Survey Finds

Preliminary data gathered from 463 U.S. colleges and universities for the 2012 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments (NCSE) indicate that these institutions’ endowments returned an average of -0.3 percent (net of fees) for the 2012 fiscal year (July 1, 2011 – June 30, 2012). The preliminary FY2012 return was down sharply from the FY2011 average return of 19.2 percent.

It is expected that more than 800 institutions of higher education will participate in the NCSE by the time data collection and analysis are complete.