The University of Minnesota collected $298 million in private donations last year, ranking 10th among all U.S. public colleges, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy.
The University of Texas at Austin led the public list with $529 million. Three other Big Ten universities ranked in the top 10: Michigan, third; Indiana, sixth; and Ohio State, seventh.
Harvard led all private colleges with $1.156 billion in donations. Stanford followed with $928 million.
The Chronicle of Philanthropy has tracked private donations since 1991. It says giving to public colleges has risen 151 percent in that time; gifts to private colleges are up 72 percent.