“Our 2023 Alumni Philanthropy Study is the first report of its kind for the agency, and comes after higher ed experienced its best fundraising year to date. We surveyed more than 1,000 college-educated adults in the United States for their opinions on giving trends and higher ed. Our findings uncover an interesting dichotomy between higher ed’s widely reported banner year for fundraising, and alumni perceptions of higher ed and philanthropic activity. Understandably this left us asking, What Gives?“

This study was facilitated by SimpsonScarborough as a tool to help partners in the higher-ed field discover what the next decade could look like for alumni giving and how that will impact the future of higher-ed institutions.

Much of the data uncovered by this study was heavy and showed fairly negative feelings from alumni about giving to their alma maters. Our challenge was how to present this data in as positive of a way possible while still accurately translating and showcasing the findings.