Class of 2018 Four-Year Graduates’ Average Student Debt Is $29,200
Student Debt and the Class of 2018, TICAS’ 14th annual report on debt at graduation, found that about two in three (65 percent) seniors who graduated from public and private nonprofit colleges in 2018 had student loan debt, and these borrowers owed an average of $29,200, 2 percent higher than the 2017 average of $28,650.
While student debt loads continue to climb, the pace has slowed significantly from prior years. One important factor in the slower growth of student debt appears to be greater state and local support for public colleges, which enroll three-quarters of undergraduates.
Read the report
View the interactive map
Read coverage in the New York Times and USA Today
NYT Op-Ed: The Gaping, Recession-Sized Hole in 2020 College Plans
To make public college affordable and sustain, we need a plan to help states better weather the devastating impact of recessions. Read more from TICAS president James Kvaal in an op-ed for the New York Times on the potential impact the next recession could have on higher education. The op-ed highlights the need for a federal and state partnership to sustain and increase overall investments in public colleges and universities, and the importance of integrating that partnership into college affordability plans in 2020 candidate platforms. A related TICAS report, Better Together: How a Reimagined Federal-State Partnership to Fund Public Higher Ed Could Help Bring College Within Reach for All, detailed how the federal government should work with states to promote college affordability.
Read the op-ed
Read the report
Charting the Course for Redesigning Financial Aid in California
In conjunction with a convening of financial aid experts in the state, last month TICAS released a report with newly detailed recommendations for how California policymakers should move forward to strengthen college affordability through meaningful and equitable financial aid reform. As detailed in the report, equitable financial aid reform will require that the state: Improve the accuracy of colleges’ cost estimates; set reasonable financial expectations for families and for students; ensure reasonable non-financial eligibility terms for students; remove unnecessary and outdated barriers to financial aid; and communicate effectively with students and families.
New TICAS blog: What’s in the House College Affordability Act
On October 31, the House Committee on Education and Labor passed the College Affordability Act (CAA), a comprehensive proposal to reauthorize the Higher Education Act. In a new blog post, we outline major provisions included in the CAA that TICAS has recommended and that would significantly improve college affordability and better protect students and taxpayers from predatory practices and colleges, as well as areas where we would like to see improvements to further strengthen the bill.
Read the blog
Read our statement
Read our letter of support for the House College Affordability Act
California Governor Signs Key College Oversight Bills
We commend Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Legislature for strengthening protections for students at for-profit schools. The three bills signed by the Governor last month — AB 1340 (Assemblymember David Chiu), AB 1344 (Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan), and AB 1346 (Assemblymember Jose Medina) — are important steps to increase oversight, transparency, and protections for students attending for-profit colleges. All three bills passed both the Assembly and Senate with bipartisan support, and we’d like to thank advocates like YOU who took action and raised your voice to protect students.
Urge Your Senator to Pass the Future Act & Restore Critical Funding for HBCUs & MSIs
Contact your Senator today to urge them to pass the FUTURE Act, a critical bill extending vital funding from the federal government to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) and other Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs). The bill was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on September 17, 2019 but mandatory funding for these important institutions has EXPIRED because the Senate has failed to pass this important bill.
We need your voice to help get this bill over the finish line! Contact your Senator HERE to save the FUTURE of STEM education at our nation’s HBCUs and MSIs.
