Key facts

Reported value

USD 1.10 billion

As of

June 30, 2025

Portfolio

Endowment net assets

Location

Washington, DC

Spending policy

5% on the stated policy base

Data through FY2025

Balance reference

Endowment size and reporting scope

The reported balance is a stock of assets measured at a date. Annual support and investment income are flows across a fiscal year. Donor-restricted funds and board-designated funds can share an investment vehicle while retaining different spending permissions. A consolidated balance sheet also includes buildings, receivables and liabilities, which are outside an endowment-only figure. Pool value and the legal institution's net assets therefore require separate labels. Survey scope and definitions

The official USD 1,102.671 million figure and the FY2025 survey's USD 1,123.330 million describe their respective dates and reporting categories. The official balance retains its stated label, endowment net assets. A change in currency, period or included accounts can produce a different total; the figures are presented separately. Official financial scope

Source: NACUBO · Data through FY2025

The FY2025 survey value for American University is USD 1,123.330 million, compared with USD 1,050.811 million for FY2024. The USD 72.519 million movement is 6.90% of the earlier balance. It includes changes in investments as well as additions and distributions. NACUBO explicitly distinguishes this change in market value from an investment rate of return. FY2025 respondent values and definitions

The available history begins in FY2016 at USD 576.919 million and ends in FY2025 at USD 1,123.330 million. The change across those observations is USD 546.411 million. The smallest reported balance in the displayed series is USD 576.919 million in FY2016; the largest is USD 1,123.330 million in FY2025. These are closing asset values. They do not show how much of a year's movement came from new gifts, spending or investment results. NACUBO historical workbook

Spending policy and payout

American appropriates 5% of its endowment's average fair value over the preceding three fiscal years, calculated on an annual basis. The policy is designed around long-term support and capital growth. It uses an averaging base, so its rate is not a direct ratio to the latest closing balance. Spending disclosure

Source: NACUBO · Data through FY2025

The size of a spending account is separate from the current market value of its underlying endowment. A transfer from the investment pool authorizes support for the account's purpose. A smoothing formula can delay the effect of market gains or losses on that support. Unspent distributions can also remain available for a beneficiary beyond the year of appropriation. Spending measures

Governance and investment office

The consolidated statements distinguish pooled endowment from separately managed endowments. They also distinguish endowment investment return from other investment return. Trustees' designations affect the purpose of board-designated assets, while donor restrictions govern the restricted portion. Investment governance

Federal excise tax on investment income

Public Law 119-21 changed Section 4968 for tax years beginning after December 31, 2025. Applicable private institutions must have at least 3,000 tuition-paying students in the preceding tax year, with more than half located in the United States, and student-adjusted endowment of at least $500,000. The rates are 1.4% from $500,000 through $750,000 per student, 4% above $750,000 through $2 million, and 8% above $2 million. Enacted law, Section 70415 These rates apply to net investment income, using the law's prior-year asset and student-count definitions.

An institution's tax tier requires its statutory asset base, eligible student count and related-organization treatment. The survey's closing market value does not supply that calculation. No institution-specific rate is assigned without an institutional disclosure. A campus's enrollment in a public fact sheet can differ from the daily-average, full-time-equivalent count required by the law.

FY2025 size-band comparison

The FY2025 survey value of USD 1,123.330 million places this respondent in the $1B to $5B band. The published band contains 125 respondents and USD 268.0 billion of aggregate assets. Its average five-year annualized net return is 10.8%, and its ten-year average is 8.0%. The size classification follows the survey-year balance even where an official disclosure on this page uses a later year or a different portfolio scope. NCSE size groups NCSE average net returns

Source: NACUBO · Data through FY2025

NCSE's allocation categories combine strategies with different liquidity and valuation practices. Its Alternatives group can include private capital, hedge funds and real assets. Matching that broad weight would not establish identical holdings. The displayed mix is a survey average, not this institution's target allocation. Published category weights are shown with an explicit rounding difference so the full bar totals 100%. NCSE allocation definitions

Public records and reporting dates

The ProPublica nonprofit API identifies the legal filer as American University, EIN 530196549. Its available filing for the year ended June 30, 2023 reports total filer assets of USD 2,414.730 million, revenue of USD 933.862 million, expenses of USD 912.489 million. These are filer-wide amounts, which can include buildings, operating resources and other assets outside the endowment. The filing period is retained separately from the current investment disclosures. ProPublica structured filing data

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