Will Miles and Ryan McClory came upon a briefcase with the sum in £50 notes at a bus station.
The briefcase also included passports and letters from the University of Bath.
Miles told The Bath Chronicle: "We were a bit shocked when we saw all the money in the case. We didn't know exactly how much it was, but we could tell it was a large amount."
The A-Level students gave the briefcase to two police officers and were later told that the owner - who had intended to use the money to pay for his son's university tuition and accommodation fees - had claimed the money back.
McClory added: "I was pleased when I got the phone call saying he had the case back. It is a lot of money to have lost, and so I'm glad that we managed to get it back to him."
The teenagers were praised by local police for their "honesty and integrity". They received no reward for handing in the money.
