American Colleges Received $5.2 Billion In Foreign Funding In 2025, Education Department Reveals

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

American colleges and universities received more than $5.2 billion in reportable foreign gifts and contracts last year through more than 8,300 transactions, the Department of Education said in a Feb. 11 statement.

The database was compiled from foreign funding disclosures submitted by educational institutions. Such disclosures are mandated by Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, which obligates universities and colleges receiving federal funding to annually disclose gifts and contracts from foreign sources valued at $250,000 or more.

The top recipient of foreign funds last year was Carnegie Mellon University, which received almost $1 billion. This was followed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, also at nearly $1 billion, Stanford University, which got more than $775 million, and Harvard University, which received more than $324 million, the department said.

Qatar was the biggest foreign source of reported gifts and contracts, pouring more than $1 billion into U.S. educational institutions last year. This was followed by the United Kingdom at more than $633 million, China at more than $528 million, Switzerland with $451 million plus, Japan with $374 million, Germany at more than $292 million, and Saudi Arabia spending more than $285 million.

The data has been made available for public inspection via the foreign funding higher education platform launched earlier this year by the Trump administration. The information is based on reports through Dec. 16, 2025.

Between 1986, when Section 117 was included in the Act, and Dec. 16, 2025, a total of $67.6 billion in foreign funding had been reported across 555 institutions, data from the platform show.

Qatar also topped the aggregate list of foreign funding sources at $7.7 billion, followed by China at $6.4 billion, and Germany at $4.7 billion.

The top recipient during this period was Harvard, which received $4.2 billion in foreign funding. Carnegie Mellon University came in second at $3.9 billion, followed by MIT with $3.5 billion.

In this multidecade period, Harvard was also the top recipient of funds from parties located in “countries of concern,” at $610 million. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology was second, receiving more than $490 million, while New York University received more than $462 million to hit the third spot.

Foreign countries of concern include China, North Korea, Russia, Iran, and other nations determined as such by the Department of State.

“Thanks to the Trump Administration’s new accountability portal, the American people have unprecedented visibility into the foreign dollars flowing into our colleges and universities—including funding from countries and entities that are involved in activities that threaten America’s national security,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said.

“This marks a new era of transparency for the American people and streamlined compliance for colleges and universities, making it easier than ever for institutions to meet their legal obligations.”

In April 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on transparency regarding foreign influence at American universities.

The order instructed the education secretary to ensure robust enforcement of foreign funding reporting at higher educational institutions to prevent harm to American interests.

“It is the policy of my Administration to end the secrecy surrounding foreign funds in American educational institutions, protect the marketplace of ideas from propaganda sponsored by foreign governments, and safeguard America’s students and research from foreign exploitation,” the order said.

Investigations and Lawsuits

In its latest statement, the Department of Education said it had initiated four Section 117 investigations since the start of the Trump administration amid reports of “inaccurate and untimely foreign source gift and contract disclosures.”

The universities subject to the probe were Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Michigan, and the University of California–Berkeley.

In addition to Section 117 enforcement, the Trump administration has engaged in legal conflicts with universities over various policies.

In July 2025, the administration withheld $584 million in research funds from the University of California–Los Angeles (UCLA), alleging that the institution failed to tackle anti-Semitism as well as discriminatory admission practices.

A lawsuit was filed in September 2025 by associations and labor groups representing employees at the university’s 10 campuses, alleging violation of First Amendment rights. In November 2025, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from cutting federal funding to the university.

Harvard filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in April, seeking to restore $2.2 billion in contracts and grants withheld by the government.

A federal judge reversed the funding freeze, highlighting that the government violated First Amendment rights while pushing forward its efforts to counter anti-Semitism. The Department of Justice appealed the decision in December 2025.

On Feb. 2, Trump announced that his administration would seek $1 billion in damages from Harvard, calling the university “strongly anti-Semitic.”