Dreams Dashed: California Colleges Where Many Borrow But Few Repay

More than six in ten (62%) college seniors who graduated from public and private nonprofit colleges in 2019 had student loan debt and they owed an average of $28,950. This is a lower share of students than the Class of 2018 (65%), and a very slight decline (less than 1%) in total debt from the 2018 average of $29,200.

This brief illustrates that while many borrowers in IDR will repay their loans in full, those who do receive a discharge of remaining debt after 20 or 25 years of responsible payments may face an unaffordable tax liability because these discharged amounts are treated as taxable income under current law.

In the 2020 presidential election campaign, college affordability has become a central household economic issue that nearly every candidate feels compelled to address.

Comprehensive policy framework for designing a new federal-state partnership to fund public higher education. This proposal offers a roadmap for turning the tide of state disinvestment and restoring the promise of public higher education for all students.

New data show that the average student debt for college graduates continues to climb but at a slower pace. Nationally, about two in three (65 percent) college seniors who graduated from public and private nonprofit colleges in 2018 had student loan debt. These borrowers owed an average of $29,200, 2 percent higher than the 2017 average.

Report examining changes in state and local appropriations and tuition revenue between the years during and following the Great Recession, and their impact on resources disparities across public colleges and universities, and the underrepresented students of color who enroll in them.