On the Wealth of US Elite Colleges

Here’s one thing that most non-Americans probably don’t know. A handful of colleges in the US are richer than entire nations. The archetype, of course, is Harvard University which boasts an endowment of over 40 billion dollars--nearly twice the GDP of my home country, Uganda.(In case you’re wondering, my very own Rochester sits at $2.3 billion--equivalent to the GDP of Lesotho).

Imagine that: a university with a population of 24,000 people having more money than a country with over 80 MILLION people(tu te connais). It’s mind boggling to say the least. The extreme wealth of (some) American colleges has been the topic of late-night bar conversations and senate policy-deliberations alike.

But I, in particular, have always pondered over why this only happens to be the case in the US, while equally prestigious and much older institutions such as Oxford and Cambridge are nowhere nearly as rich. Before an idiot shouts “Capitalism blah blah...”, reckon that Oxford has an equally vast plethora of wealthy alum as Harvard, and had a 600 year head-start. Same goes for Cambridge.

My take is, first and foremost, the way the tax system works in the US--it really incentivises the wealthy to make charitable donations. The culture too. I work at the UR Medical Center and I’m taken aback by all the christening that emblazons the rooms and corridors: driving along Joseph C Wilson Blvd, you park at Wolk Pavillion and make your way into Golisano Children’s Hospital, through Wegman Hall into Obama Nursing wing(the last name is made up, but you get the point) everything--from the conference rooms, to the toilets, are named after someone, usually an entrepreneur that donated a couple of million dollars, or one of the early employees that played a pivotal role in the establishment of the institution. And it doesn’t stop at naming the structure. There will also be strategically placed plaque detailing who these people are and why they are relevant. If you ever need inspiration to make a fortune, come to Rochester and I’ll happily take you on a tour around my workplace.

But also, American colleges--the elite, private ones at least--go above and beyond to make their students’ lives during their time in the university as comfortable as possible, and despite the shortcomings of the formal education system in general, they do endeavour to see to it that their students succeed post-graduation.

Let me expound.

During this winter break(Mid December to January), after selling whatever paltry assets I had to make it to Rochester, I did not have $1,500 to fly back home. The school recognized that this was a genuine concern and made the allowance for me and other students who were staying for the holiday for one reason or another to stay in the housing rent-free. They had nothing to benefit in the short-term by doing this. In fact, they were losing money. I was using their electricity, water, laundry rooms, wifi, name it.

For comparison, back in December 2014, when I was preparing for my final examinations, I remember requesting my High School for permission to stay behind and utilise the classroom and peaceful environment to immerse myself in books. In the event that my sacrifice paid off, they would have their only 20points(perfect score) that year. But they were adamant. Getting a teacher in whose house I could stay also proved impossible-- even when I offered to foot the food expenditure.

Eventually, with the help of my aunt, I resorted to getting a house in the surrounding community and would make my way up the hill to the school everyday to study. But, eventually, the trek proved cumbersome and unsafe so I spent my last week in the house studying alone. Budo is a fairly prestigious school and most definitely could afford to accommodate my request. But for one reason or the other, they did not.

20 years down the road, assuming I have a couple of million dollars that I’d like to donate, who do you think I’ll give it to?

And there you have why some schools like Princeton have $2 million for each student enrolled, and continue to drown in alumni donations while some struggles to have in their coffers more than $1k per matriculated student.

I’m saying this as someone who spent a whole year serving as the president of King’s College’s alumni association(University Chapter) so that should remove all suspicions of bias. I’m simply calling a spade a spade.

Wait. There’s more.

In addition to winter stay, here are other subtle examples that demonstrate that the UoR and other elite private colleges have their students’ best interest at heart.(My fellow students might disagree, but I realise it’s mostly because they are acclimatized and have lost all form of outsider perspective).

• Need-blind food pantry: In the event that you reach the middle of the semester and are flat-broke with 0 declining balance(declining is virtual currency that can be used to purchase food on campus), you can make your way to a store that hands you a couple of essentials that can get you through the week--no questions asked.

• Disability resources: In the event that you get injured or even matriculate with a disability, the school pays a student to take decent notes for you.

• Tutoring and office hours: The university mandates professors to open times in their schedule where students can meet them and inquire about the material in the course and any extra help when needed. It also pays students who have previously done well in a particular course to also be available for assistance and grading exams.

• In the event of health issues or other extenuating circumstances, one can be given reasonable extension on the assigned coursework.

• Business-wear closet: In the event that you have scored an interview, but don’t know what to wear, the Greene center(named after a wealthy charismatic lady in the investment banking sector whom I had the pleasure of meeting) has a closet where you can take items of clothing, ranging from shoes to suits to Jewellery, all free of charge.

• Kearns Center: In an education system where textbooks are mandatory for certain courses and copyright laws are pervasive and strictly enforced, your textbook bill for each semester can easily go into the thousands of dollars(more than an entire year’s tuition at a decent private school in Uganda). Luckily for students for whom this poses a significant financial burden, the Kearns center offers free book lending and beyond that, the library is mandated to make a book available to you if it doesn’t have it in its inventory--even when that means borrowing it from a library in another state-- it will make it happen.

• Gadget loans: The university is able to lend you pretty much any gadget: from a Macbook, to a PS4. It’s quite possible to survive here, possibly even thrive, without ever purchasing your own laptop.

And many more.

All these, while not particularly remarkable to Americans or international students that have been in international schools all their lives, they leave me particularly impressed with these institutions and I’m starting to appreciate why most affluent families in developing countries, China especially, spare no expense in seeing to it that their child(ren) get(s) educated at these elite institutions.