<p>Although that drop is significant (down from $7.6 billion at the end of June, 2010), Michigan's endowment is still the 6th largest in the nation. Below are the top 10:</p>
<h1>1 Harvard University: $26 billion</h1>
<h1>2 Yale University: $16.3 billion</h1>
<h1>3 Princeton University: $12.7 billion</h1>
<h1>4 Stanford University: $12 billion</h1>
<h1>5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology: $10 billion</h1>
<h1>6 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor: $6 billion</h1>
<h1>7 Columbia University $5.7 billion</h1>
<h1>8 Northwestern University $5.3 billion</h1>
<h1>8 University of Pennsylvania: $5.3 billion</h1>
<h1>10 University of Chicago: $5 billion</h1>
<h1>11 Duke University: $4.6 billion*</h1>
<h1>12 Cornell University: $4.5 billion</h1>
<p>Notre Dame and Texas have not released their 2009 endowment figures yet, but they will each have endowments greater than $5 billion.</p>
<p>I hear the state of Michigan doesn’t contribute much to University of Michigan funding relative to other state schools around the country. There has to be a reason for this drop other than Michigan’s devastated economy.</p>
<p>If Michigan’s endowment is so high is there a reason why they are stingy with financial aid or is it because of the drastically high enrollment figures.</p>
<p>rm, Michigan’s endowment has grown by 9% annually so far this decade, one of the highest rises in the nation. The drop in endowment this year was entirely due to the financial meltdown. Michigan does not rely on its endowment nearly as much as its private peers. In general, a university will never use more than 4% - 5% of its endowment on an annual basis, and Michigan is no different in this respect.</p>
<p>Entertainer, Michigan is very wealthy, but it is not at a state where it can afford being that generous with aid. If Michigan’s endowment continues to grow at the pace it has for the last 25 years, in a few years, we should be in a position to offer more generous aid. We are improving, but we are not quite there yet.</p>