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    Bowdoin College Endowment Returns 26%, Hits Record $3.6 Billion in FY2026

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    Bowdoin College Endowment Returns 26%, Hits Record $3.6 Billion in FY2026

    Key Points

    • Bowdoin’s endowment returned 26% in fiscal 2026 and reached a record $3.6 billion.
    • Endowment payouts now fund half of Bowdoin’s $250 million operating budget.
    • The new endowment tax exempts Bowdoin from July 2026, but its record year still falls under the old 1.4% rule.

    Bowdoin College’s endowment returned 26% for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2026, pushing it to a record $3.6 billion, Bowdoin announced on October 23. That return beat the 16.2% median for college endowments in preliminary Cambridge Associates data.

    Bowdoin currently sits on our list of no-loan colleges that cover need with grants.

    The longer track record is just as strong. Bowdoin’s endowment has returned 13.7% a year over 10 years and 11.1% over 20 years, which the college says ranks in the top 1% of endowments Cambridge Associates tracks.

    President Safa Zaki said, “These excellent results help us sustain all that we do at Bowdoin.” Results like these explain why a 2025 proposal to raise the endowment tax targeted the wealthiest schools.

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    Why It Matters

    Endowment payouts now fund 50% of Bowdoin’s $250 million operating budget, while net tuition and fees cover 38%. A decade ago, those shares were nearly reversed. Funds restricted to scholarships covered 80% of the fiscal 2026 aid budget, which shows why what college really costs at a wealthy school can sit far below its sticker price.

    The Endowment Tax Concerns

    The One Big Beautiful Bill Act replaced the flat 1.4% tax on endowment investment income with tiers of 1.4%, 4% and 8%. The law also raised the cutoff to 3,000 tuition-paying students, up from 500.

    Bowdoin enrolled about 1,896 students on campus this fall, so it avoids out of the tax going forward. Even so, the exemption leaves five open questions:

    • The record year is still taxed. The new rules start with tax years beginning after December 31, 2025.
    • The bill is unknown. The tax applies to net investment income, not the full 26% gain. Back in 2018-19, Bowdoin paid about $700,000, according to the Bowdoin Orient, when the endowment was $1.74 billion.
    • One number protects the exemption. At roughly $1.9 million per on-campus student by our math, Bowdoin would land in the 4% tier if Congress lowered the cutoff.
    • The budget has little cushion. With endowment payouts funding half of operations, a future tax would reach aid and staffing directly.
    • Treasury still owes guidance. The law directs Treasury to write rules that block schools from restructuring to avoid the tax.

    How The Endowment Tax Applies To Bowdoin In 2026

    RulePrior LawNew Law (OBBBA) Student Threshold500 tuition-paying students3,000 tuition-paying students Tax RateFlat 1.4%1.4%, 4% or 8% by endowment per student Bowdoin Fiscal Years CoveredThrough June 30, 2026Starting July 1, 2026 Bowdoin StatusTaxedExempt

    Source: Bowdoin College, Troutman Pepper Locke. The College Investor.

    How This Connects

    The 3,000-student line means a small college with $1.9 million per student pays nothing, while a larger school with less wealth per student can owe 4%.

    We’ve argued that taxing endowments isn’t enough when wealthy schools still collect federal aid. Bowdoin’s 26% year gives both sides of that debate a fresh data point.

    What’s Next

    Bowdoin’s tax filing for fiscal 2026 will show what the record year cost under the 1.4% rule. Beyond that, watch for Treasury’s anti-avoidance rules and any bill that lowers the 3,000-student cutoff, which would bring schools like Bowdoin back under the endowment tax.

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    Robert Farrington is the founder of The College Investor and is widely recognized as one of the nation’s leading voices on student loan debt and saving for college. He holds an MBA from UC San Diego Rady School of Management and has spent over 15 years researching, writing, and advising on student loans, 529 plans, financial aid programs, and saving and investing for young professionals.

    Robert has been featured in the The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NBC News, and Forbes, where he has been a regular personal finance contributor for over a decade. His work combines both professional expertise and personal experience – he successfully navigated his own student loan repayment journey and has helped thousands of readers do the same.

    He is committed to making the intersection of personal finance and education transparent and accessible. You can learn more about Robert on the About Page or on his personal site RobertFarrington.com.

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