Which U.S. Universities are the Wealthiest? Find Out ...

The Johnson Gate at Harvard Yard

The 10 richest universities, led by Harvard with its astounding endowment, hold more than a third of the total wealth in all of higher education, according to a study released Thursday by Moody’s Investors Service that examines growing wealth inequality in higher education.

Analysts studied the richest 20 public and richest 20 private schools, based on total cash and investments as of fiscal year 2014. Harvard tops the list, with $42.8 billion.

University of Texas Austin campus

The richest institutions, which also include MIT, Yale, and Dartmouth, have grown even richer in the years after the economic collapse at a pace that far outstrips that of less-wealthy schools, some of which are struggling to stay open, according to the study.

Those 40 colleges also received 60 percent of philanthropic gifts in fiscal 2014, according to Moody’s, a trend that is expected to continue and further widen the gap between rich and poor schools.

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Experts say it is becoming more difficult for less-wealthy schools to survive, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

“What we see again and again is that the most elite universities are those universities who have the most wealthy alumni,” said David Callahan, editor of Inside Philanthropy.

That bifurcation is a trend in the American economy in general, and higher education, an economic engine in New England, is no exception.

“It is a much more difficult environment in which to operate,” said Karen Kedem, coauthor of the study.

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