Covering Costs

Average annual tuition now ranges from around $10K for an in-state public university to almost $40K for a private institution. Those figures have tripled since 1970, accounting for inflation.

When factoring in associated costs like housing and fees, the total cost routinely exceeds $100K for a four-year degree at a public school. 

Parental contributions (39%) and scholarships and grants (25%) provide the primary funding for the average academic year (see breakdown). Student loans cover about 10% of the cost—although family contributions include loans parents take out, too.  

Data suggest two decades after college, half of borrowers still owe an average of $20K on their loans.

Who Owes The Most?

The distribution of total student debt—who owes what and how much—is highly skewed and depends on several factors. 

About 15% of borrowers owe less than $5K, and one in three has less than $10K in outstanding student debt. Conversely, 7% of borrowers owe more than $100K yet account for 40% of all outstanding federal debt. See tables here (“Portfolio by Debt Size”). 

A quarter of borrowers were enrolled in graduate programs but account for half of all outstanding debt. For those pursuing law or medical degrees, the average student debt is nearly $190K—about six times that of average bachelor's degree debt.
 

Millennials and Gen Xers currently hold the bulk of outstanding student debt. Those aged 25 to 49 owe more than $1.1T, or 70% of all outstanding federal loans. 

Racial disparities in borrowing remain, most notably in the length of repayment. One long-term study found the median Black borrower still owed 95% of the loan amount two decades after graduation (note: the cohort tracked entered school in 1996-97). 

As of 2021, roughly 3 million borrowers (about 7%) defaulted on their debt. That number was down from a 2016 peak of around 5 million.

Future

Americans' total amount of outstanding student loans now exceeds the country's credit card debt ($1.3T). Some economists argue the burden creates a net drag on the economy.
 

Partial or total outstanding loan forgiveness has become a hotly debated policy issue, with advocates arguing it would have positive economic benefits and critics countering it disproportionately helps upper-income households (see overview).