How to Give

Since 1978, the Haas Fund has been going beyond what state funding, tuition, and other philanthropy can accomplish alone. Year after year, the fund is made possible by gifts from students and alumni that enable us to:

• Hire (and keep) outstanding faculty to build and strengthen top-notch programs
• Provide scholarships to attract top talent, enrich diversity, and add unique perspectives
• Offer career services and networking support so students and alumni can thrive
• Reinforce the impeccable reputation and value that comes with your Haas degree

Gifts to the Haas Fund are used where and when they’re needed most. Your gift allows you to actively partner with us in providing ongoing resources and support to current and future students and alums. And it’s a signal that our leadership team has earned your trust.

Our senior leadership team at Haas, including the Dean, COO, CFO, chief DEI officer, and assistant deans of academics, instruction, and programs, make ongoing assessments about where and how to use Haas funds. They balance the following priorities to do so:

1. The varying needs of students, faculty, and programs
2. Ongoing funding priorities as well as unexpected and/or new opportunities
3. Fair and equitable distribution of resources between current initiatives and emerging priorities

Not-for-profit organizations like Berkeley Haas have both earned and contributed revenue. Revenue at Berkeley Haas comes from a variety of sources including tuition and fees, state support, executive education, sales and services, sponsored research, donations, and interest from endowments. Your donation to the Haas Fund is part of an ecosystem of revenues that work to support consistency, as well as enhancements, in the student experience from year to year.

Donations to the Haas Fund fuel our strength, our agility, and our social impact. More donors making gifts on a recurring basis means more funding we can count on. And that means we can actively plan to power even more good. Giving monthly, quarterly, or annually at an amount that is meaningful and sustainable for you can make a big difference for Berkeley Haas.

We hope that you’ve personally benefitted from the incredible faculty, scholarship opportunities, career services, and prestige that come with a Berkeley Haas education. All tuition combined (including international and out-of-state) only covers about half the cost of running the school, so all students benefit from the added value of philanthropy. We hope you’ll see it as a privilege to light the way and benefit the next generation of students.

While other Top 10 peer schools like Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton boast billions in their endowments, Haas is top-ranked with far less banked—just $498 million to be exact. That modest endowment is also full of restricted funds, meaning we can’t tap into it to fund some of the most pressing needs at hand—programs, job placement, and building up a high-caliber student body that will preserve the reputation and value of your Berkeley Haas degree.

In an ideal world, yes. And in the distant past, that may have been the case. Between 1999 and today, state funding for UC Berkeley stayed the same while enrollment grew by 83,000 students. The reality is, we can’t rely on state funding alone. Haas pays more funding back into the UC Berkeley campus than we receive in state support each year, which is why we need the ongoing support of our student and alumni communities.

At UC Berkeley, tuition is lower for MBAs and significantly lower for undergraduates than other Top 10 schools. In our full-time MBA program, we spend 35 percent of overall student fees on scholarships. We also reinvest a large portion of tuition dollars back into programming, leaving us with little capital to fuel the growth our students and alumni expect. Thankfully, philanthropy accounts for a critical 15 percent of our overall revenue, which enables us to stay flexible in uncertain times.

We are thankful for any and all support of UC Berkeley. But what’s really helpful are funds that can be used to benefit the whole of the school in intentional and balanced fairness. This is how the Haas Fund works.

The Haas Fund is dedicated capital for the school’s most pressing needs. However, you can choose one of ten priority areas to support with your gift. You can give to your specific degree program, or designate your gift to support faculty, student excellence, Dean Harrison’s priorities, or school-wide needs. Any fund you choose, you know that you are helping the school achieve our top priorities and enhancing our excellence.

Let’s start with what we don’t do. We never sell alumni information or donor lists to outside organizations. Your info is safe with us.

Unless you give anonymously, we will recognize your generosity by including your name in our annual report of private giving. It’s our way of thanking you publicly for your contribution and inspiring others to give like you have.

In certain highly specific cases, a UC Berkeley staff member or volunteer may be given permission to contact you on behalf of the university. For example, a classmate may reach out to you to participate in reunion activities. They are not permitted to keep your information or use it for any other purpose.

An impressive 95 percent. A very small portion, currently 5 percent, is allocated to support UC Berkeley’s fundraising efforts. This level compares favorably to those at other institutions. Half of that 5 percent eventually comes back to Haas, and the other half goes to further investments in development campus-wide. Your support enables us to renew the university’s public mission and world-class excellence for generations to come.

You have the option of giving to school-wide support, which gives Haas the most flexibility in supporting all programs, all students, and all alumni. But yes—you can also give to your program of choice and funds will be allocated accordingly.

Current students and new alumni qualify for the Haas Leadership Society at special rates:

• $250 for undergraduate students
• $500 for graduate students
• $500 for young undergraduate alumni 1-4 years after graduation
• $1,000 for young graduate alumni 1-4 years after graduation
• $1,000 for young undergraduate alumni 5-9 years after graduation

All others can become members by making an annual contribution of $2,500 or more to Haas.

You’ll receive special opportunities as a member, including curated insights, priority event invitations, and impact reporting. Contact us for more information.

Yes! We love creative giving. Eligibility for gifts-in-kind, such as the donation of assets and services, is managed by UC Berkeley’s central development office. To determine if your item is appropriate as a gift-in-kind, please contact us at 510.642.6791 or [email protected].

Talk to your fellow Berkeley Haas students and/or alums! Sharing your own story about why you give to the Haas Fund can inspire others to do the same. If you need help finding the words to say in conversations with your peers, we can provide training and tools to boost your confidence.

Certainly! And we’d love to help. Start by contacting us at [email protected] to discuss your goals and determine next steps.

For more information on ways to give, such as through Donor Advised Funds, Corporate Matching programs, and Planned Gifts, visit Ways to Give.