The Board of Visitors heard a strategic observations presentation June 6 from University President Scott Beardsley on the financial structure and growth of the University during an “affordability” and “accessibility” meeting at its retreat at Morven Farm in Albemarle County. Beardsley highlighted the revenue that is produced by both the Academic Institution and the Health System divisions of the University, and how the University has been able to weather turbulent times in higher education.
Affordability and accessibility are two of seven areas of focus Rector Carlos Brown identified for the Board in March. Brown said in March that focusing the Board’s attention to these areas with “leadership and engagement” will have a “positive impact” on the University.
All Board members were present Saturday except for Rudene Haynes, Elizabeth Hayes and John Nau, and Vice Rector Victoria Harker participated in the meeting via Zoom. Beardsley started his presentation by discussing the mission of the University, which he explained is to be a “premier” public institution that serves as a place for the free exchange of ideas and a collaborative and diverse community that values honor and respect. He further explained the University as an enterprise that generates $7.1 billion in revenue each year.
According to Beardsley, the University's revenue is split into two “engines” — the Academic Institution and the Health System. Beardsley reported that the Health System generates $4.4 billion in revenue and serves approximately 1.8 million patients annually. The Academic Institution includes revenue made directly from the flagship university, which generates $2.6 billion, the College at Wise, which generates $80 million and the research enterprise that generates $572 million.
Following Beardsley's explanation of the educational services provided through the Academic Division and the clinical care provided by the Health System, he outlined how the University is able to provide those services — he said it is because of proper asset management, a positive brand reputation and active community stakeholders.
“We have investments like [the University of Virginia Investment Management Company] … real estate, philanthropy and investments, and without those, we would not be able to be [a] premier public university and one of the best academic medical centers, which is our vision,” Beadsley said.
UVIMCO is an organization that manages the University’s endowment and strives to make significant investment returns that can support the University’s future growth. According to Beadsley, the UVIMCO investment had grown to about $17 billion this past spring. Last year, the University's endowment had grown to about $15.5 billion, marking an approximate $1.5 billion increase since last year.
Beardsley also said that the University has an impressive brand and public reputation that has been built over the span of 200 years and has been supported by the University's extensive alumni network. He emphasized that the University is active in communities — both in its home in Charlottesville and in the world.
Following his overview of the University and its revenue cycle, Beardsley discussed the University's financial growth since 2016. He noted that since 2016, the University's revenue has grown from about $3.1 billion to about $7.1 billion, marking approximately $4 billion in growth from 2016 to fiscal year 2025.
Beardsley also said that in the same 10-year period, the Health System has changed from a minority of the University’s revenue to the majority.
“Some joke that U.Va. is a healthcare system with a hedge fund that happens to have a couple schools attached … the mix has changed,” Beardsley said. “The healthcare system … is super important and it's a critical part of the mission of the Commonwealth.”
Beardsley also discussed that growth differs across various groups within the University. He explained that undergraduate student enrollment numbers and the total number of employees in the University are increasing. Some of the increase in employees is due to the Health System’s acquisition of the Novant Health-U.Va. Health joint venture, he explained.
In 2021, U.Va. Health became the “full owner” of the Novant Health-U.Va. Health joint venture system. The venture included U.Va. Health and Novant Health, which each had joint ownership over the Culpeper, Haymarket and Prince William medical centers. U.Va. Health now has sole ownership over these locations.
Beardsley also discussed what he characterized as the turmoil in higher education recently — he noted examples of changes in enrollment of international students, leadership turnover and federal funding cuts.
International students are currently facing more challenges when applying for student visas, and according to Beardsley, the changing policy regarding international student enrollment is putting many higher education institutions in difficult positions due to potential financial loss. Beardsley said that major universities have “tremendous” amounts of international student enrollment — they typically are ineligible for financial aid meaning they pay the full cost of tuition.
“If you add it up, [you have] millions of [international students] spending full tuition dollars [because] usually, they do not get financial aid,” Beardsley said. “Some [international students] are extremely good, so they are a source of advantage for the United States when they immigrate here, and then they stay and they lift our economy. But some of those rules are changing.”
Beardsley said that an additional challenge stemming from decreased international student enrollment is that some universities have had issues filling classes, leaving millions in losses. He specifically mentioned the University of Oregon’s recent enrollment challenges. Oregon has long relied on out-of-state students — who pay higher tuition — to fund the school, but out-of-state enrollment is dropping. To combat that, the Chronicle of Higher Education pointed out that Oregon needs to significantly cut its budget. The University has been mostly immune to these issues, Beardsley noted.
Tuition was another factor discussed by Beardsley, who explained that raising tuition is to the University’s benefit. The Board’s Finance Committee approved the most recent increase in tuition of 3.6 percent for the 2026-27 academic year during their April 16 meeting.
“We’ve been able to raise tuition again and again,” Beardsley said. “We’ve tried to moderate that — not above the rate of inflation — but we have been able to increase tuition rates, and that has been to our benefit.”
There has been significant leadership turnover occurring in academic institutions nationwide, Beardsley said. He explained that he recently went to an Atlantic Coast Conference presidents meeting, and only two of the presidents at the meeting had held their positions for more than five years.
He also discussed the state of research funding for the University compared to other major research institutions like Duke University, Johns Hopkins University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Additionally, he highlighted recent closures and bankruptcies occurring in small colleges like Hampshire College that have all disrupted institutions across the country.
The University's strong financial position has allowed it to remain stable, Beardsley said, amongst all of the research funding cuts, leadership turnover and enrollment turbulence. According to Beardsley, the stability is due to prior investments and the over $6 billion that was raised in the Honor the Future campaign. Beardsley put this number into perspective by noting that schools such as Tufts University have endowments that total $3 billion and many others have endowments around the $1 billion range.
Beardsley concluded his presentation by highlighting some areas of improvement for the University, including aims to increase its domestic and international rankings, research efforts and global reputation. Meeting members moved into closed session following Beardsley’s presentation.
Other Board meetings that took place during the most recent June session can be read about on The Cavalier Daily’s website. The Board is scheduled to meet next Sept. 16-19.
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