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Student debt

Question:
What statistics do you have on student loan debt and repayment for college students?

Response:

Average Cumulative Student Loan Debt Among Degree/Certificate Completers

The average cumulative loan amount borrowed by 2017–18 undergraduate degree/certificate completers who ever received at least one federal loan for their undergraduate education was lowest among certificate completers ($14,700), followed by associate’s degree completers ($20,400) bachelor’s degree completers ($27,800).1 Among associate’s degree completers, those who attended public institutions received a lower cumulative federal loan amount ($16,800) than did those who attended private nonprofit institutions ($27,300) and private for-profit institutions ($26,600). Among bachelor’s degree completers, those who attended public institutions received the lowest cumulative federal loan amount ($26,100), followed by those who attended private nonprofit institutions ($29,000) and private for-profit institutions ($35,700). Among certificate completers, however, there were no measurable differences in cumulative federal loan amounts between those who attended public, private nonprofit, or private for-profit institutions.


Average cumulative federal loan amount for undergraduate degree/certificate completers who ever received federal loans, by degree type and control of institution: Academic year 2017–18

The data in this figure is described in the surrounding text.

NOTE: Data in this table represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Degree-granting institutions grant associate’s or higher degrees and participate in Title IV federal financial aid programs. Includes only loans made directly to students; does not include Parent PLUS Loans or other loans made directly to parents. Constant dollars are based on the Consumer Price Index, prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to an academic-year basis. Averages exclude students with no student loans. The National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Administrative Collection (NPSAS:18-AC) is based solely on administrative sources and, unlike prior NPSAS studies, does not include student survey data. Caution should be used when comparing NPSAS:18-AC to prior NPSAS studies.


1 In this paragraph of the Fast Fact, all dollar amounts are expressed in constant 2020–21 dollars. Does not include private loans because missing student interview data meant there were not enough data for accurate estimates.

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Loans for Undergraduate Students. Condition of Education. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved June 23, 2022, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cub.


Cumulative Borrowing and Repayment over Time

Among 2015–16 bachelor’s degree recipients who took out federal student loans, the average percentage of federal student loans still owed 12 months after degree completion was 92 percent.2

Percentage of 2015–16 bachelor’s degree recipients who took out federal loans for postsecondary education, average amount borrowed, and ratio of amount owed 12 months after bachelor’s degree completion to amount borrowed, by demographic and enrollment characteristics in 2017
  Total federal loans Undergraduate federal loans1 Graduate federal loans2 Average ratio of amount owed to amount borrowed6
Demographic and enrollment characteristics Percent who borrowed Amount borrowed3 Percent who borrowed Amount borrowed4 Percent who borrowed Amount borrowed5
Total 68.0 $30,800 66.6 $27,400 10.4 $25,600 91.7
Sex
Female 71.1 31,700 69.6 28,100 11.7 25,300 93.3
Male 63.9 29,400 62.5 26,500 8.7 26,100 89.4
Race/ethnicity7
White, not Hispanic or Latino 67.7 29,900 66.1 26,700 9.8 26,400 89.3
Black, not Hispanic or Latino 86.3 39,500 85.7 34,800 17.3 25,100 103.0
Hispanic or Latino, of any race 70.1 28,200 67.7 25,700 11.3 21,400 94.6
Asian, not Hispanic or Latino 43.9 26,500 43.0 22,700 5.8 32,100 81.4
Other or Two or more races, not Hispanic or Latino 71.3 31,000 70.4 28,300 9.4 22,400 97.9
Control of bachelor's degree institution
Public 66.2 28,900 64.4 25,700 10.1 25,300 91.2
Private nonprofit 68.8 31,300 67.7 27,600 10.5 27,000 91.0
Private for-profit 84.3 44,200 83.8 40,700 13.7 22,700 98.8
1“Undergraduate federal loans” includes subsidized and unsubsidized Direct Loans (formerly called Stafford Loans) and Perkins Loans. Excludes Parent PLUS loans.
2“Graduate federal loans” includes subsidized and unsubsidized Direct Loans (formerly called Stafford Loans), Perkins Loans, and Graduate PLUS loans taken out to pay for any education above the bachelor’s degree level, including professional practice doctoral programs such as law, medicine, etc.
3Amount borrowed is calculated among those who took out either undergraduate or graduate federal loans and includes both their undergraduate and graduate federal loan amounts.
4Amount borrowed is calculated among those who took out undergraduate federal loans and includes only their undergraduate federal loan amounts.
5Amount borrowed is calculated among those who took out graduate federal loans and includes only their graduate federal loan amounts.
6Includes respondents who had paid off their loans as of 12 months after bachelor’s degree completion and owed $0. The ratio of amount owed to amount borrowed may be over 100 percent because the amount owed includes interest accrued while loans are in deferment, causing the borrower to owe more than the original amount borrowed.
7“Black, not Hispanic or Latino” includes African American; and “Other or Two or more races, not Hispanic or Latino” includes American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and respondents who identify as more than one race.
NOTE: Estimates pertain to individuals who completed the requirements for a bachelor’s degree in 2015–16 and were awarded their degree by a Title IV eligible postsecondary institution in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, or Puerto Rico no later than June 30, 2017. This table includes the 6 percent of respondents for whom the 2015–16 bachelor’s degree was not their first bachelor’s degree.

2 Text from an IES NewsFlash dated July 27, 2020.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2020). One Year After a Bachelor's Degree: A Profile of 2015–16 Graduates (NCES 2020-341), Table 5.1.

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