University profileBethlehem, PAFiscal year 2025
How much federal money does Lehigh University get?
Lehigh University received $43.1 million in federal awards in FY2025, 312th of 998 institutions (top 31%).In fiscal year 2025, federal agencies obligated $43.1 million to Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA), counting grants, contracts, loans and other awards.
Ranked 312th of 998 by federal awards
FY2025 federal awards, institutions ranked either side of Lehigh University.
| Ball State University #309 · IN | $44M |
| Central Piedmont Community College #310 · NC | $44M |
| Southern Illinois University (Edwardsville) #311 · IL | $43M |
| Lehigh University #312 · PA | $43M |
| Indian River State College #313 · FL | $43M |
| Oakland University #314 · MI | $43M |
| Alabama State University #315 · AL | $43M |
What the money is
That is down 4.5% from FY2024 ($45.1 million). Compared with FY2019, the last year before pandemic relief, it is up 72.1%. The largest share came as grants ($29.1 million, 67.5%). The National Science Foundation was the biggest funder ($15.9 million). Its largest programs were Federal Pell Grant Program ($11.8 million); Engineering ($7.5 million); Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships ($3.8 million). It ranks 312th of the 998 institutions on this site by FY2025 total.
What is counted: awards made directly to this institution, under the registered names LEHIGH UNIVERSITY (UEI E13MDBKHLDB5, VRA9HB8UM8P3). Money that reaches it as a subaward through another organization is not included. Separately incorporated foundations, hospitals and laboratories have their own records and are not added in. Grouping rules are explained in the methodology.
Federal awards by year
Lehigh University: $43M in FY2025, up 72% on FY2019
Federal award obligations by fiscal year and type, FY2018–FY2026, nominal dollars. FY26* is preliminary and still filling in.
- Insurance and other
- Loans (subsidy cost)
- Direct payments
- Grants
- Contracts
View every year as a table
| Fiscal year | Contracts | Grants | Direct payments | Loans | Insurance and other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2018 | $351,285 | $23.3M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $23.6M |
| FY2019 | $352,098 | $24.7M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $25.0M |
| FY2020 | $516,944 | $29.7M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $30.3M |
| FY2021 | $1.7M | $41.8M | $363,648 | $0 | $0 | $43.8M |
| FY2022 | $360,026 | $36.0M | $3.1M | $0 | $59,999 | $39.6M |
| FY2023 | $817,487 | $47.7M | $7.3M | $0 | $50,000 | $55.8M |
| FY2024 | $200,052 | $40.6M | $4.3M | $0 | $80,000 | $45.1M |
| FY2025 | $901,269 | $29.1M | $13.0M | $0 | $90,000 | $43.1M |
| FY2026* | $0 | $17.7M | $5.6M | $0 | $100,000 | $23.4M |
Source: USAspending.gov (U.S. Treasury).
Who pays and for what, FY2025
The agencies that obligated the most to Lehigh University, and the largest federal programs. Programs are federal Assistance Listings (formerly CFDA numbers); contracts have no listing number, so they do not appear there.
Top awarding agencies
| Agency | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| National Science Foundation | $15.9 million | 36.9% |
| Department of Education | $13.6 million | 31.6% |
| Department of Defense | $4.6 million | 10.7% |
| Department of Energy | $4.5 million | 10.5% |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $4.3 million | 10.0% |
| Department of Agriculture | $81,734 | 0.2% |
| Department of Transportation | $27,083 | 0.1% |
| National Endowment for the Humanities | $19,213 | 0.0% |
| Department of State | $0 | 0.0% |
| Department of the Interior | -$28,045 | -0.1% |
Top programs
| Program | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Pell Grant Program Assistance Listing 84.063 | $11.8 million | 27.3% |
| Engineering Assistance Listing 47.041 | $7.5 million | 17.5% |
| Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships Assistance Listing 47.084 | $3.8 million | 8.8% |
| Fossil Energy Research and Development Assistance Listing 81.089 | $3.0 million | 6.9% |
| Mathematical and Physical Sciences Assistance Listing 47.049 | $2.5 million | 5.8% |
| Biomedical Research and Research Training Assistance Listing 93.859 | $2.3 million | 5.3% |
| Basic and Applied Scientific Research Assistance Listing 12.300 | $2.3 million | 5.3% |
| Office of Science Financial Assistance Program Assistance Listing 81.049 | $1.3 million | 2.9% |
| Computer and Information Science and Engineering Assistance Listing 47.070 | $1.1 million | 2.5% |
| Research and Technology Development Assistance Listing 12.910 | $986,825 | 2.3% |
Other institutions in Pennsylvania
- University of Pennsylvania$889M
- University of Pittsburgh$817M
- Pennsylvania State University (University Park)$659M
- Carnegie-Mellon University$334M
- Temple University$149M
- Pennsylvania State University (State College)$121M
- Drexel University$105M
- Pennsylvania State University (Hershey)$96M
Questions and answers
- How much federal funding does Lehigh University receive?
- $43.1 million in fiscal year 2025, according to USAspending.gov award data for its registered UEI(s).
- Where does Lehigh University's federal money come from?
- The largest funder in FY2025 was the National Science Foundation ($15.9 million, 36.9%). By type, grants were $29.1 million and contracts $901,269.
- Did Lehigh University's federal funding go up or down?
- FY2025: $43.1 million; FY2024: $45.1 million (-4.5%).
Sources and notes
- USAspending.gov (U.S. Department of the Treasury), API endpoints spending_over_time and spending_by_category, filtered by recipient ID(s) e8a1ed30-c6e7-a26e-e0a9-0a292a9ed2c8-C, d286b826-2b0d-23f2-6a51-a4f52940e1c1-C, fiscal years 2018–2026. Amounts are obligations in nominal dollars. Data retrieved 2026-10-04. Public domain.
- How the figures are built, and what they leave out: sources and methods.