Annual Development Survey

2021 Fundraising Data

Each year, the AAMC conducts a national benchmarking survey to measure the impact, costs, and staffing of fundraising at its member medical schools and teaching hospitals. This survey helps medical school deans, teaching hospital CEOs, and other leaders assess the effectiveness of their institutional development programs. Through the survey’s annual compilation and analysis of data, medical schools and teaching hospitals can also identify philanthropic trends useful for development planning and management.

Survey Results

Key Results

Highlighted here are key results from the 2021 survey of 124 institutions (reporting 2020-2021 gift year data) as of Aug. 22, 2022.*

Overall philanthropic support

$85.3 million: mean total philanthropic support per institution in 2020-2021
2.5% increase from $83.3 million per institution in 2019-2020
$116.1 million: mean total philanthropic support from private institutions
$57.8 million: mean total philanthropic support from public institutions
$35.1 million: mean total philanthropic support from medical schools
$122.3 million: mean total philanthropic support from teaching hospitals
$123.9 million: mean total philanthropic support from joint programs

Fundraising costs and return on investment

$8.6 million: mean fundraising cost per institution
3.2% increase over 2019-2020
$0.11: median fundraising cost per dollar raised
$8.97: median return on investment per dollar invested

Gifts of $1 million+

1,914 gifts over $1 million and 303 of these gifts were greater than $5 million

Individual Giving

$31.7 million: mean total support from individuals per institution in 2020-2021
15.2% increase in mean total private support from individual donors per institution
$49.3 million: mean total support from individuals from private institutions
$15.7 million: mean total support from individuals from public institutions
$3,746: average gift from individuals
4.6% increase average gift from individuals over 2019-2020
$4,469: mean gift size from individuals from private institutions
$3,091: mean gift size from individuals from public institutions

*Note: These data provide insights into the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on fundraising for AAMC-member institutions.

Data Access Requirements

Data Confidentiality Policy: The salary data collected for individual positions at an identified institution are classified by the AAMC as confidential. All other survey data are classified as restricted. All data are securely stored by the AAMC. The restricted data are released with institutional identification to participating institutions but are not made available to the public.

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