Glossary

This glossary is a collection of terms (and their meanings) heard frequently in the daily life of the Controller's Office. Some are specialized, others are more commonplace - and our intent in compiling them is to help MIT staff, faculty, and students conduct their Controller's Office business more effectively.

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Net Assets

The assets remaining after all liabilities have been deducted. Net assets are categorized into three groups according to the nature of the restrictions placed on the gifts by donors.

Permanently Restricted Net Assets are those gifts for which the original principal can never be spent. They comprise gifts to true endowment, outstanding pledges and assets held in trust that, when paid or matured, will go to the endowment, and gifts that are required to be used for student loans.

Temporarily Restricted Net Assets are those gifts that will ultimately become available for operations or capital expenditures. They require some event or lapse of time to take place before they are available for spending. They include pledges, gifts of real estate not yet sold, gifts for construction projects that have not been completed and certain life income funds that, upon maturity, will be available for spending.

Unrestricted Net Assets comprise all of the remaining economic resources available to the Institute.