Higher Education

Advance Your Institution’s Capabilities

Higher education is a societal cornerstone that allows individuals to elevate themselves and become meaningful contributors. While the sector faces regulations and economic challenges, these can be seen as opportunities for growth and innovation.

Many schools are investing in a proactive management strategy to help support students, faculty, facilities, operations, and secure long-term sustainability. Developing a dynamic, future-focused approach can help identify improvements in operational activities, define long-term strategies, and uncover financial opportunities.

Achieve business gains while continuing to fulfill your institution’s mission by creating a proactive environment that can:

Evaluate and mitigate risks, including evolving regulation and compliance requirements
Develop operational systems that respond to changing needs
Enhance and strengthen management strategies for greater impact
Leverage current technologies and innovations for improved efficiency
Unlock revenue diversification options to support growth
Establish a long-term plan for operational success and leadership transitions

Explore how our services can help your higher education institution overcome challenges, stay ahead of change, and embrace new opportunities.

Create a Future-Focused Infrastructure

Delivering on your institution’s mission relies on a solid base of strategic business practices. Discover how our professionals can help you overcome your biggest hurdles.

Evaluate and Mitigate Risk

From the U.S. Department of Education to the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) name, image, and likeness (NIL) regulations to Title IX, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), and construction, higher education institutions have a myriad of funding agencies to report to. The ever-changing compliance requirements and associated risks are not only hard to track but can also greatly impact an institution’s financial health, student enrollment, and overall reputation.

Identify, evaluate, and mitigate potential risks to achieve strategic goals, overcome compliance challenges and stay current with applicable changes that can help preserve federal and state funding, reduce fines and penalties and protect your institution’s composite score with Enterprise Risk Assessments, internal audits, single audits, and tax services.

Build Sustainable Systems

In a sector challenged by diminishing enrollment, ever-changing regulations, and escalating costs, the ability to work efficiently, pivot quickly, and operate strategically is paramount. Developing and implementing business systems that promotes a proactive environment not only keeps your institution stable but can also unlock new revenue streams and cost-saving opportunities.

From policy and procedures to governance to organizational planning, enable your institution to be more efficient, productive, and responsive to change all the while delivering on its overarching mission with comprehensive Strategy & Operations Services and Governance Services.

Increase Technology ROI

Fully leveraging current and emerging technologies can significantly improve an institution’s ability to lower operating costs, employ data-driven decision-making, safeguard digital assets, and do more with less. Unfortunately, many higher education institutions struggle to complete their digital transformation and position themselves to get the most out of their technology investments.

Empower your institution with digital tools, systems, and security measures that can increase productivity, deliver real-time analytics, boost organizational responsiveness, and meet security compliance requirements with our Technology Services and Cybersecurity offerings.

Execute Deals Confidently

Mergers, acquisitions, partnerships, and other major transactions are strategic mechanisms for increasing physical footprints—both national and international—expanding enrollment opportunities, funding capital improvements, or exiting the sector. However, given these transactions’ complexity, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and miss opportunities.

Transform transaction events from a reactive, last-ditch effort to a proactive, advancement strategy that aligns with your institution’s mission and goals with support from our Transactions Services.

Elevate Academic Offerings

Enrollment and staffing are directly linked to program and degree offerings. Analyzing the dynamics between these two factors, as well as each individual element, can uncover insights and opportunities to improve your degree offerings, increase enrollment, and streamline operating costs.

Increase your institution’s ability to attract and retain students while delivering competitive academic offerings with enrollment and program analysis through our Performance Measurement Services.

Plan for Ongoing Success

Developing a strategy to help establish a long-range vision or direction—as well as creating an intentional plan to effectively activate a new strategy or navigate leadership changes—can help outline a strong path forward. Understanding your institution’s current state can also help inform strategy to both address existing challenges and build a solid foundation to reach desired goals.

Develop practical solutions for your institution’s current and future success with our Organizational Planning and Strategy Services, including Strategic Planning, Management Succession Planning, and Performance Measurement.

Comprehensive Support for Higher Education and Auxiliary Groups

Institutions throughout higher education look to our professionals for guidance, including:

Public and private universities
University foundations
Academic medical centers
Public research institutions
Shared services and consortiums
Edtech, third-party investors and other peripheral institutions

Auxiliary Groups and Alumni Associations

Associated student bodies
Bookstores
Housing and dining services
Parking and transportation
Research institutes and centers
Sports and athletics
Student and recreation services
Student health services

Extensive Higher Education Experience

More than 320 professionals specializing in tax-exempt entities

More than 200 clients in higher education services

More than 30 years experience in higher education

Deeply immersed within the higher education sector and serving institutions nationwide, our professionals have extensive knowledge of the nuanced operations of higher education institutions and their auxiliary organizations. Our collaborative approach takes the time to understand the specifics of your institution’s needs and strategically develop unique solutions contextualized among greater higher education trends and activity.

We don’t simply provide templates or toolkits; we proactively determine appropriate solutions that help build foundations for long-term success—so you’re prepared to embrace and stay ahead of change.

Our one-firm approach allows your institution to tap into the full resources of our firm, integrating guidance and solutions related to other integral support areas including finance, tax, and audit concerns, and outsourced finance and accounting needs.

Supporting the Future of Higher Education

As a community-focused organization, we know the importance education makes in individual lives and societal success. The Moss Adams Foundation, created in 2004, provides funding and endowments to a variety of colleges and universities. Funding comes directly from our firm, our partners, and our employees, and provides some measure of assurance that educational programs at these schools will continue to attract talented faculty and students.

Education & University Partnerships

Moss Adams and the foundation partner with Beta Alpha Psi to hold Project Run With It. This competitive consulting challenge offers students the opportunity to solve real-world business problems in support of local not-for-profits. In total, $44,000 in funding supported the event and not-for-profits served by each winning team's chapter.

The PhD Project works to enrich the talent pipeline by increasing diverse representation of leadership within education and the business environment. In creating access to education and development opportunities in the classroom and corporate setting, the PhD Project establishes inroads for students from historically underrepresented backgrounds to innovate and lead the future. We’re proud to support the PhD Project with a $25,000 grant, bringing essential resources to their work.

Pie chart illustrating Moss Adams Foundation’s monetary support of various not-for-profit organizations associated with the higher education mission.

Explore the Foundation’s impact through its recent annual report.

Watch Webcasts Related to Higher Education

Dive deeper into industry hot topics to help your business stay ahead of change and plan for what’s next with our complimentary webcasts, available to view on demand. Explore upcoming events and watch the latest series.

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