[jannotti]

I wonder if the returns quoted for endowments properly subtract out the salaries, build space, etc for the employees of the institution with the endowment, or just the explicit costs from outside management?

(See my clarification below. I'm talking about the costs only for the employees making investment decisions.)

[tamana]

Hmm? Money spent on university operations is not an investment expense.

[jannotti]

I don't care about the label, I care for a fair comparison of the question, "Would Universities be better off with a simple mix of index funds or using their current approach?" To answer that question, you'd like to figure out what the performance would have been if universities used that simpler approach, and that might include saving a lot of money on the university employees who select managers or make investment decisions at the university. I hope it didn't seem like I thought you should subtract out the costs of random university employees.

(Rereading my words, I can certainly understand that interpretation. Sorry.)

[gburt]

I think he meant the financial managers.