Myth: Tuition covers the full cost of a Tulane School of Medicine education.
Reality: The School of Medicine’s tuition revenue does not cover the full expense of delivering a Tulane education; therefore, funding must come from other sources. Gifts to the School of Medicine help cover some of the cost that remains beyond tuition and endowment payouts. The Dean’s Fund for Excellence and the Adopt-a-Student Fund contribute thousands in funding toward scholarships, helping bridge the gap between tuition, endowment earnings, and financial need.
Myth: My donation won’t be used the way I intended.
Reality: Tulane School of Medicine complies with donor intent and efficient use of funds. We have staff dedicated to ensuring that your gifts are used as you have specified.
Many alumni give to the Dean’s Fund for Excellence, which is the most flexible gift and allows leaders to fund the most pressing needs and opportunities across the School of Medicine. Others choose to designate their gifts specifically to the Adopt-a-Student Scholarship Fund, which provides scholarships to deserving students; Dean’s Discovery Fund for Medical Research, which provides support for groundbreaking research; or the Diversity and Inclusiveness Initiative Fund, which is directed to the School’s Office of Multicultural Affairs and supports individuals traditionally underrepresented in medicine and medical education.
All gifts to Tulane School of Medicine support med students while increasing the value of your degree. Tulane’s sustained excellence would not be possible without donors like you.
Myth: Tulane has a large endowment and doesn’t need my donation.
Reality: Compared to our peer and aspirational schools, Tulane has a relatively small endowment. This translates to having fewer endowment dollars per student relative to our peer schools. Endowment earnings cover less than 10% of Tulane’s annual operating budget. Think of it like a household budget. On one hand, you set aside money you hope will grow for long-term needs like savings, education, and retirement. On the other hand, you spend money to live on for rent, food, and utilities. For Tulane School of Medicine, it’s the same. The School needs money to grow with, which often comes from the endowment or support from larger gifts. It also needs money to live on, which often comes from annual giving.
While the endowment is extremely important to Tulane’s long-term health, gifts to unrestricted current-use funds like the Dean’s Fund for Excellence play a major role in keeping the Tulane experience unique and fulfilling.
Tulane School of Medicine’s annual fund gifts are those that can be used right away, without an endowment’s restrictions. Through these gifts, the School supports scholarships, diversity initiatives, research advancements, and much more. Given our smaller endowment, Tulane is heavily reliant on these current use annual fund donations.
Myth: My small gift to Tulane School of Medicine doesn’t make a difference.
Reality: The impact that every gift has on the Tulane School of Medicine is profound. Participating in philanthropy at any level shows your Tulane pride and love for the university. It also increases our participation rate for alumni giving.
