The average student debt surpassed $30,000 in 2015, up 4 percent compared to 2014, according to a report from The Institute of College Access and Success (TICAS).
Based on the report, which was released Tuesday, the average undergraduate student loan borrower from the class of 2015 will owe $31,100 and pay about $300 per month during the next 10 years.
“Overall, there’s been a tremendous increase in the number of graduates with student debt compared to the previous generation,” TICAS President Lauren Asher said, according to CNN Money.
Less than half of new four-year graduates had taken out loans in 1993. However, that landscape has changed with 68 percent of new four-year graduates applying for student loans as of 2015.
“Student debt is still rising, and the typical college graduate now leaves school with over $30,000 in loans,” Asher said, according to Business Insider. “We need to make college more affordable and debt less burdensome for students and families.”
According to Consumerist, many students are using private loans, which are typically more expensive and provide fewer protections for the borrower. On the other hand, federal loans do just the opposite, as they do a good job of protecting consumers and provide several income-based repayment plans to help borrowers along the way.
“In addition to how much they owe, it matters what kinds of loans students have,” Debbie Cochrane, TICAS vice president, said in a statement, according to The Root. “Compared to federal loans, private loans – whether from banks, states, or schools – can be much harder to repay, especially if the borrower hits hard times.”
TICAS said increasing Pell Grants as well as developing a new federal and state partnership – one that would bring the cost for public college down – could be the solution to this student debt issue, The Root noted.
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