About Northeastern University
Northeastern University advances education, research, and experiential learning across a global campus network to drive innovation, real-world impact, and workforce readiness.
Focus Areas
Higher educationResearch (health, security, sustainability, network science)Experiential/co-op programsEntrepreneurship and venture accelerationGlobal campus development
Who They Fund
undergraduate studentsgraduate studentsacademic researchers/facultyuniversity-wide programs and departmentsinternational/global partner institutions
Funding Style
research funding
About Northeastern University
Northeastern University’s grantmaking is shaped by very large sub-awards that move through research and university partnerships, with individual awards reaching $9,695,666 to US Ignite Inc in 2024 and $5,985,695 to the same organization in 2023. That pattern points to a funder that uses grants to support work tied to its academic and research mission rather than individual giving. The recent grants list also shows substantial support for higher-education and research institutions across the country, including the University of Massachusetts in Boston, the University of Georgia Research Foundation, Temple University, the University of Pittsburgh, and the University of Southern California. Its funding aligns with the university’s broader priorities in education, research, experiential learning, entrepreneurship, and global campus development. The grant record includes both major university recipients and organizations connected to applied research and innovation, suggesting a mix of institutional capacity building and project-based support. Across the recent grants shown here, the foundation appears to fund at a scale that can underwrite large collaborative work as well as smaller university-linked initiatives.
What Northeastern University Funds
Higher education is central to the foundation’s grantmaking. It gave $1,738,392 to the University of Massachusetts for a sub-award and $950,088 to Worcester Polytechnic Institute for a sub-award, showing support for university-based programs and research activity. Health and biomedical research also appear in the recent grants, including $1,080,642 to General Hospital Corporation and $562,455 to Dana Farber Cancer Inst for sub-awards. The list also includes engineering and applied technology recipients such as $776,625 to Sarcos Corp and $520,978 to Concurrent Technologies Corporation, both for sub-awards. Beyond that, Northeastern University supports distributed research across many institutions, with awards to the University of Michigan, Rutgers the State University, and the University of Florida.
How Northeastern University Gives
Typical grant size sits at a median of $85,103, with the lower quartile at $33,064 and the upper quartile at $234,134. The recent record includes repeated awards to the same recipients across 2023 and 2024, such as US Ignite Inc, Lukla Inc, General Hospital Corporation, and the University of Michigan, which indicates ongoing relationships rather than isolated one-time gifts. The foundation is classified as a regular funder and does not fund individuals. The grants shown are overwhelmingly sub-awards, which fits a model centered on participating in larger institutional or research collaborations.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$46.1M
Total Assets
$6.8B
Total Revenue
$3.2B
Total Expenses
$3.1B
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $33K and $234K, with a median of $85K.
25th Percentile
$33K
Median
$85K
75th Percentile
$234K
Geographic Reach
National43 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
JOSEPH E AOUN
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