Figures include state tax funds appropriated for colleges and universities, for student aid, and for governing and coordinating boards. They do not include funds for capital outlays and money from sources other than state taxes, such as student fees or appropriations from local governments. The statistics cover aid to both undergraduate and graduate students. Figures cover spending in science and engineering and exclude spending in such disciplines as the arts, education, and the humanities. Unlike previous years' figures, these statistics include all colleges and universities, and are not limited to doctorate-granting institutions.
Figures cover federal obligations, which are funds set aside for payments.
Institutions do not always receive them in the year in which they were obligated. Figures include only spending for science and engineering projects, and exclude spending in such disciplines as the arts, education, and the humanities. Figures are based on a survey of 938 institutions, which together received about 84 percent of all private contributions to colleges and universities. Rankings of institutions may be heavily influenced by the timing of fund drives, unusually large gifts, and other factors.