College Students Increase Borrowing

December 7, 2010

This article is included in these additional categories:

Analytics, Automated & MarTech | Data-driven | Financial Services | Government & Politics | Youth & Gen X

Undergraduate college student borrowing has risen dramatically in recent years, according to new data analysis from the Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends project.

Baccalaureates Increase Borrowing 50%

pew-college-borrowing-dec-2010.JPG
Graduates who received a bachelor’s degree in 2008 borrowed 50% more (in inflation-adjusted dollars) than their counterparts who graduated in 1996, increasing the average figure from $10,138 to $15,425.

Meanwhile, graduates who earned an associate’s degree or undergraduate certificate in 2008 borrowed more than twice what their counterparts in 1996 had borrowed (average of $6,649 compared to average of $3,318).

More College Students Borrow More

In 2008, 60% of all graduates had borrowed, compared with about half (52%) in 1996. Furthermore, among 2008 graduates who borrowed, the average loan for bachelor’s degree recipients was more than $23,000, roughly 35% more than the slightly higher than $17,000 the average bachelor’s degree recipient borrowed in 1996.

For associate’s degree and certificate recipients, the average loan increased about two-thirds, to more than $12,600 from about $7,600 (all figures in 2008 dollars).

1 in 5 Baccalaureates Borrow More than $30K

pew-college-borrowing-share-dec-2010.JPG
Almost one in five (17%) graduates with a bachelor’s degree in 2008 borrowed more than $30,000, compared to just 4% of associates degree holders and 3% of certificate holders. More than half (54%) of bachelor’s degree holders from private for-profit colleges, as well as 25% of baccalaureates from private non-profit colleges and 12% from public colleges, borrowed in excess of this amount.

More College Students Attending Private For-Profit Schools

Levels and rates of borrowing are typically highest at these institutions. During the past decade, the private for-profit sector has expanded more rapidly than either the public or private not-for-profit sectors. In 2008, these institutions granted 18% of all undergraduate awards, up from 14% in 2003.

Students who attend for-profit colleges are more likely than other students to borrow, and they typically borrow larger amounts. For example, 24% of 2008 bachelor’s degree graduates at for-profit schools borrowed more than $40,000, compared with 5% of graduates at public institutions and 14% at not-for-profit schools.

And although private for-profit schools specialize in different fields of study than do public and private not-for-profit schools, the differences in borrowing patterns persist within fields of study. For almost every field of study at every level, students at private for-profit schools are more likely to borrow and tend to borrow larger amounts than students at public and private not-for-profit schools.

Total Back-to-College Spending Rises 12% from ’09

In addition to spending more on tuition, college students are spending more on back-to-school merchandise, according to the recent National Retail Federation “2010 Back to School Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey.” Spending on back-to-college merchandise in 2010 was expected to total $33.77 billion, up 12% from $30.08 billion in 2009 and 8% from $31.26 billion in 2008.

Chart-Library-Ad-1

Explore More Articles.

Which Skills Are Important in RevOps?

Which Skills Are Important in RevOps?

9 in 10 RevOps professionals view data analysis skills as being important, a high percentage also don’t believe they need this skill for their job.

Marketing Charts Logo

Stay on the cutting edge of marketing.

Sign up for our free newsletter.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This