Executive Vice President and Treasurer Glen Shor discusses MIT’s financial strategy for the 2025-2026 academic year
Shor: “We will also continue to assess the steps that need to be taken to ensure we can sustainably support MIT’s mission and impact”
Recently, The Tech reached out to Glen Shor, MIT’s Executive Vice President and Treasurer, to answer questions regarding MIT’s finances in the 2025-2026 academic year. Shor has held this position since 2020. He was previously the Institute’s Vice President of Finance starting in 2015. He leads a team responsible for managing MIT’s $34 billion in net worth in assets and over $5 billion in operating revenues.
On Feb. 7, The National Institute of Health (NIH) announced a new policy that introduces a 15% cap to indirect costs, also known as the facilities and administrative cost. MIT’s indirect cost rate is currently 59%. If the indirect cost cap takes effect, MIT is projected to lose “approximately $35 million in reimbursements” over the next year. As of March 19, this policy is blocked via preliminary injunction by Angel Kelley, U.S. District Judge for Massachusetts, while it is under litigation.
Shor’s responses have been lightly edited for clarity.
The Tech: With the recent cap in reimbursement for indirect costs, can you provide a detailed breakdown of the effects of the recent federal budget cuts on MIT? Which programs or departments are most impacted by these budget cuts?
Shor: MIT has joined the American Council on Education (ACE), the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities (APLU), the Association of American Universities (AAU), and a number of AAU member institutions in filing a suit in federal court seeking to block these indiscriminate cuts from taking effect.
While litigation remains active, we are pointing to our filings for comment and institutional information.
TT: In summary, the filing references the immediate short-term effect of the cut, which includes “operating budget reductions and curtailment of capital investments.” Severe disruptions will affect NIH-funded projects, including the developing improved treatment for Alzheimer's disease in the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory as well as numerous ongoing cancer research projects in the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer research.
The filing also states, “MIT is preparing to defer capital projects, including research infrastructure, space renewals and lab equipment installations.” Budget cuts may take the form of reducing graduate student and employee positions, dialing down facilities investment, and more.
TT: What measures does MIT plan to implement for mitigating the deficit from these cuts, and how sufficient or effective do you expect them to be?
Shor: As MIT has done in the past in the face of abrupt and unpredictable financial challenges, we are adopting a more careful stance on budgeting and hiring. In the past, this has included instituting a general hiring freeze and working with our academic and administrative units to make reductions to their central budget allocations for the forthcoming fiscal year.
In addition, MIT is advising principal investigators to take a conservative approach to new funding commitments on federal awards. We’re taking these proactive steps to best position MIT to thoughtfully navigate uncertainty stemming from changes at the federal level. Any MIT community members with questions about research funding are encouraged to email research-policy-questions@mit.edu.
TT: MIT initiated immediate actions like filing lawsuits to block the cut and hiring freeze. What will MIT’s long-term policy be to ensure financial stability in the face of ongoing federal funding uncertainties?
Shor: MIT will continue to educate policymakers and others about the important roles our endowment and government research funding play in enabling us to elevate U.S. national security and economic competitiveness, as well as our citizens’ quality of life. We will also continue to assess the steps that need to be taken to sustainably support MIT’s mission and impact.