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#HBCUStrong

The landmark study, HBCUs Make America Strong: The Positive Economic Impact of Historically Black Colleges and Universities—commissioned by UNCF’s Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute—shows that the economic benefits of HBCUs extend beyond the students they educate. They’re equally important to the regions and communities that HBCUs have served for more than 100 years.

This study is the first of its kind. It sets forth the benefits HBCUs produce in detailed, dollars-and-cents terms. It shows that money spent in, around, and by the nation’s HBCUs and their students drives economic growth both on and off campus—and that effect is multiplied over time. Each dollar spent creates far more than a dollar’s worth of productive activity as it moves through local, regional and national economies.

Map of United States

HBCUs Strengthen Our Nation


In total, the nation’s HBCUs generate $14.8 billion in economic impact annually; that’s equivalent to a ranking in the top 200 on the Fortune 500 list of America’s largest corporations.

These institutions generate 134,090 jobs for their local and regional economies—that’s equivalent to the number of jobs provided by Oracle, one of the nation’s largest private employers.

In fact, the 50,000-plus HBCU graduates in 2014 can expect total earnings of $130 billion over their lifetimes—that’s 56 percent more than they could expect to earn without their college credentials.

Download The National HBCU Fact Sheet

HBCUs Strengthen Our Communities


HBCUs have an incredible impact—they create skilled workers, jobs and serve as economic hubs for the areas that surround their campuses and beyond. Below, we break down their economic impact and detail the effect each institution has on the community, region and state it calls home.

Select one of the 100 HBCUs from the dropdown menu below to view an institution's economic impact.

HBCUs Strengthen Our States


Technical Report


Want to do a deeper dive into the numbers? Want to know more about the study's methods? Read our technical report.

Download the Technical Report

UNCF is grateful for the generous support of the Citi Foundation that made this report possible.