Study: Economic activity in state related to MSU’s operations tops $3 billion

Contact: Terry Denbow, University Relations: (517) 355-2262, denbow@msu.edu

May 7, 2007

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Whether it’s by providing jobs for thousands of people, attracting funding for research that can change and even save lives, or simply enhancing contributions to the state’s coffers because its alumni are earning high-end salaries, Michigan State University’s economic impact on the state of Michigan is enormous.

According to a newly released 85-page study by Anderson Economic Group, economic activity in the state of Michigan related to MSU’s activities was more than $3 billion in 2005. The study is available at www.msu.edu./economic_impact/.

“As a world-class research university, Michigan State University is an economic engine for the state as it generates research, innovation, new ventures and intellectual capital,” said MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon. “This report also captures many of the ways in which our day-to-day operations and the activities related to them provide a huge economic benefit to the state.”

Simon noted that the university selected the Anderson Economic Group to conduct the study expressly because of its propensity to be conservative and rigorously fact based in its assessments of economic impact.

“As an academic institution, we have very high standards for analysis and for the ways in which data are used,” Simon said. “Anderson Economic Group is the gold standard in this line of work. In terms of the range of economic impact you can attribute to an institution, they tend to err on the low side. They don’t inflate numbers. So we know the figures in this report are rock solid and that, in fact, MSU is likely to have an even greater positive economic impact in real terms.”

Other ways in which MSU generates significant economic benefits include:

• More than 214,000 MSU alumni living in Michigan earned nearly $900 million more in Michigan in 2005 than if they had attended another college or university or not attended college at all. The state received approximately $75 million in new tax revenue from these additional earnings.

• Activities at MSU’s Wharton Center for Performing Arts resulted in a net economic impact of $4.7 million in the tri-county area surrounding the university during the 2005-06 season.

• In fiscal year 2006, MSU’s Office of Intellectual Property filed 95 new patent applications and granted 37 new licenses. Also, the office licenses new technologies to private-sector businesses. During the past four years, MSU has helped 28 faculty members start their own companies to commercialize their inventions.

• MSU Extension is present in all counties of Michigan. In addition, the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station conducts research in 14 locations outside of East Lansing.

The report noted that there were additional economic activities associated with MSU that could not be quantified. These included extension and experiment station activities, technology transfers, research and knowledge creation and cultural, arts and entertainment events.

“This study proves the tremendous benefits of hosting world-class universities like MSU,” said Patrick Anderson, principal and CEO of Anderson Economic Group. “Even given a conservative approach and the fact that we did not try to estimate impact for those areas that could not be quantified, the billion dollar net benefit of MSU’s operational expenditures is impressive.

“The importance of ‘knowledge jobs’ in the new economy will magnify the benefits of MSU in the future,” Anderson said. “As a state, we dedicate significant resources to keeping million-dollar companies in the state, so it’s important to keep enterprises like our research universities with their billion-dollar impacts healthy and thriving.”

Jim Barrett, president and CEO of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, noted that Michigan State’s impact is truly statewide.

“Michigan State is extremely active in outreach, and its activities extend into every county in Michigan,” Barrett said. “As a research university, it not only creates economic impact through its activities, it also makes Michigan more attractive to investors and businesses looking for a place to locate.”

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With offices in Chicago and East Lansing, the Anderson Economic Group is a nationally recognized consulting firm, with expertise in economics, finance, market research and public policy.

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Michigan State University has been advancing knowledge and transforming lives through innovative teaching, research and outreach for more than 150 years. MSU is known internationally as a major public university with global reach and extraordinary impact. Its 16 degree-granting colleges attract scholars worldwide who are interested in combining education with practical problem solving.