Average Student Loan Debt Statistics by School by State 2018

Peterson’s voluntary financial aid survey collects responses from 1,080 4-year public and private institutions of higher education. The subsequent data allows us to provide the following valuable information on those schools for our readers:

• Average student loan debt per borrower
• Percentage of graduates with student debt
• Average private student loan debt per borrower
• Percentage of graduates with private student debt
• Overall rank in the United States (from lowest to highest debt per borrower)
• Overall rank in each college’s respective state (from lowest to highest debt per borrower)
• Overall rank amongst private institutions (from lowest to highest debt per borrower)
• Overall rank amongst public institutions (from lowest to highest debt per borrower)
• Percent change in average student debt per borrower vs. last year’s data

In the report found below, you will be able to find all of the aforementioned rankings. There is also a ranking of the overall average debt per borrower figure for each of the 50 states and Washington D.C.

The LendEDU team has worked diligently to compile this data and organize it in a user-friendly and visual manner. If you have questions about the data, the presentation of the data, or the methodology, please email support@lendedu.com.

We hope you enjoy LendEDU’s third annual Student Loan Debt by School by State Report and that it inspires you to have productive conversations about student loan debt and the cost of college.

Average Student Loan Debt by School by State

Click a state below to see the rankings of colleges in that state as well as the statistics for the state overall.

Average Student Debt by State

Rank	State	Avg. Debt Per Borrower	% Change from Class of '16	Proportion of Grads w/ Debt
1	Utah	$18,425	-2.05%	39%
2	New Mexico	$21,805	2.30%	53%
3	Nevada	$22,026	-8.73%	49%
4	California	$22,383	-0.47%	50%
5	Wyoming	$22,524	-11.25%	47%
6	Washington	$23,359	-3.33%	52%
7	Florida	$23,556	-2.02%	50%
8	Arizona	$23,913	2.26%	54%
9	Hawaii	$24,955	-3.46%	49%
10	Tennessee	$25,054	-5.85%	56%
11	Alaska	$25,349	-2.75%	46%
12	Nebraska	$25,501	-3.59%	55%
13	North Dakota	$26,080	1.03%	66%
14	North Carolina	$26,164	3.52%	58%
15	Oklahoma	$26,270	0.77%	48%
16	Arkansas	$26,561	1.45%	55%
17	Idaho	$26,604	-1.39%	61%
18	Colorado	$26,662	0.50%	52%
19	Louisiana	$26,808	-0.20%	48%
20	Missouri	$26,834	0.40%	59%
21	Texas	$27,001	2.92%	55%
22	Oregon	$27,550	1.63%	57%
23	Kansas	$27,604	-4.37%	58%
24	West Virginia	$27,608	-0.95%	70%
25	Kentucky	$28,078	-3.01%	60%
26	Georgia	$28,376	3.85%	57%
27	Montana	$28,389	-8.40%	59%
28	Illinois	$28,424	-0.20%	61%
29	Maryland	$28,844	5.88%	56%
30	Virginia	$29,316	1.96%	56%
31	Indiana	$29,405	0.33%	58%
32	Iowa	$29,411	-0.08%	62%
33	Wisconsin	$29,569	-1.18%	65%
34	Vermont	$29,656	6.43%	60%
35	Ohio	$29,723	0.49%	64%
36	District of Columbia	$29,795	-1.70%	46%
37	Mississippi	$30,268	3.78%	50%
38	South Carolina	$30,310	2.78%	58%
39	Maine	$30,321	1.91%	59%
40	New Jersey	$30,794	9.07%	62%
41	Michigan	$30,978	2.14%	58%
42	Minnesota	$31,231	-0.35%	68%
43	Massachusetts	$31,319	2.40%	59%
44	South Dakota	$31,332	-0.59%	73%
45	New York	$31,506	3.97%	64%
46	Connecticut	$31,643	-2.11%	58%
47	Alabama	$31,861	1.93%	50%
48	New Hampshire	$33,462	-4.78%	74%
49	Delaware	$34,144	1.47%	62%
50	Rhode Island	$35,371	15.78%	64%
51	Pennsylvania	$36,193	2.87%	67%

School Level Rankings

In the following tables "Debt" refers to the average debt per borrower from the Class of 2017 at the respective schools.

Public College Rankings

Private College Rankings

Key Observations

• 57.96% of graduates from the Class of 2017 at non-profit 4-year public and private colleges had student loan debt. This is slightly down from 59.78% from the Class of 2016.
• For the Class of 2017, the average debt per borrower was $28,288. This is up by $313 from the Class of 2016 where the average debt per borrower was $27,975.
• When including those with no student loans, the average graduate in the Class of 2017 had $16,320 in debt. This is down by $403 from the Class of 2016 where the average debt per graduate was $16,723.
• For the Class of 2017, private institutions gave borrowers $31,665 (58.84% of grads were borrowers) in student debt, whereas public institutions gave average borrowers $26,846 in student debt (57.24%% of grads were borrowers).
• On the school level basis in the Class of 2017, the average student debt per borrower ranged from a low of $5,633 at Bethel College to a high of $77,353 at The New School College of Performing Arts. Last year, on the school level basis for the Class of 2016, the average student debt per borrower ranged from a low of $3,809 to a high of $59,113.
• On the state level basis in the Class of 2017, the average student debt per borrower ranged from a low of $18,425 in Utah to a high of $36,193 in Pennsylvania. Last year, on the school level basis for the Class of 2016, the average student debt per borrower ranged from a low of $18,810 in Utah to a high of $35,185 in Pennsylvania.
• For the Class of 2017, of the 250 colleges with the highest amount of student loan debt per borrower, 81.6% of the institutions were private.
• For the Class of 2017, of the 250 colleges with the lowest amount of student loan debt per borrower, 55.6% of the institutions were public.

Methodology

LendEDU’s Student Loan Debt by School by State Report was created using the newest Peterson’s financial aid data. Peterson’s released the new data for the Class of 2017 at the start of August 2018. The data was reported through a voluntary survey to the colleges and universities listed in the report. For reference, the data is released on a one year delay. The Class of 2018 data will not be available until the late Summer or Fall of 2019.

The state level data was calculated by analyzing Peterson’s financial aid data for 1,080 colleges and universities in the United States. We included data on the colleges and universities that reported the following information for the Class of 2017: proportion of graduates with student loan debt, number of bachelor degree recipients, and number of student loan borrowers. In addition, we only aggregated and analyzed the data for 4-year public and private nonprofit colleges and universities.

At the state level, we assigned weights to the individual colleges within a particular state. We calculated the average student loan debt per borrower at the state level by weighting the reported average student loan debt at each college by the number of student loan borrowers in the Class of 2017 at each particular institution. We calculated the proportion of student loan borrowers by weighting the reported proportion of student loan borrowers at each college by the number of bachelor degree recipients at each particular institution. At the national level, we utilized the same weighting system used to calculate state averages. The college-level debt and proportion of borrowers were used to calculate state averages and are estimates.

The average debt per graduate was calculated by compiling the total debt at each university, divided by the number of bachelor degree recipients at each particular university. The average amount of student loan debt per graduate at the college level was then weighted by the number of bachelor degree recipients in the entire Class of 2017.

The data was provided on a voluntary basis at the college level by college officials. LendEDU did not audit the accuracy of the college level data. Therefore, the state level data may not be completely accurate.

The universities and colleges included in this study are limited to the following university function types: 4-Year Colleges, Comprehensive Higher Education Institutions, and Universities.

The universities and colleges included in this study are limited to the following main institution control types: Public State Controlled, Public State-Related, Private Nonprofit, and Private Religious.

The school level Average Student Debt per Borrower is the cumulative principal borrowed through any loan programs for the last graduating undergraduate class (all students who started at the institution as first-time students and received a bachelor's degree)–Federal Perkins, Federal Stafford Subsidized and Unsubsidized, institutional, state, private loans that the institution is aware of, etc. Includes both Federal Direct Student Loans and Federal Family Education Loans. Includes only loans (including co-signed loans) made to students who borrowed while enrolled at the institution. Excludes students who transferred in and money borrowed at other institutions, students who did not graduate or who graduated with another degree or certificate but no bachelor’s degree, as well as parent loans.

The school level Average Private Student Debt per Borrower is the cumulative principal borrowed through Private alternative loans made by a bank or lender. Includes only loans (including co-signed loans) made to students who borrowed while enrolled at the institution. Excludes students who transferred in and money borrowed at other institutions, students who did not graduate or who graduated with another degree or certificate but no bachelor’s degree, as well as parent loans.

Other Student Loan Statistics

General Information

It's no secret that student loans are a hot topic in the United States nowadays. They are mentioned in the news, both in a positive and negative light, almost every day.

With all of this news circulating around the internet, television​, and in print - it is natural to become curious about the numbers behind student loan debt.

• $1.52 trillion the total amount of outstanding student loan debt
• 45 million the total number of student loan borrowers
• $27,975 the average student loan debt per borrower from the Class of 2016
• $16,723 the average student loan debt per graduate from the Class of 2016
• 60% the percentage of graduates from the Class of 2016 with student debt
• 11.5% the average federal student loan default rate
• $351 the average monthly student loan payment for borrowers aged 20 to 30
• $203 the median monthly student loan payment for borrowers aged 20 to 30
• $57,600 the average student loan debt per graduate student
• $26,828 the average debt per borrower at public schools from the Class of 2016
• $30,281 the average debt per borrower at private schools from the Class of 2016
• $127 billion the Department of Education's estimated profit over the next 10 years

Federal Student Loans (Q1 2018)

By Loan Status

Status	# Borrowers	Total Amount
In School	7.4 million	$133.5 billion
Grace Period	1.2 million	$25.9 billion
Repayment	17.8 million	$600 billion
Deferment	3.3 million	$103.0 billion
Forbearance	2.5 million	$108.3 billion
Default	4.7 million	$88.4 billion

By Loan Type

Loan Type	# Borrowers	Total Amount
Stafford Unsubsidized	28.4 million	$463.3 billion
Stafford Subsidized	29.6 million	$272.2 billion
Parent PLUS	3.5 million	$83.7 billion
Grad PLUS	1.2 million	$59.6 billion
Perkins	2.5 million	$7.6 billion
Consolidation	12 million	$489.9 billion

By ​Repayment Plan

Repayment Plan	# Borrowers	Total Amount
Standard	13.05 million	$288.7 billion
Graduated	3.28 million	$95.9 billion
Income-Contingent	630 thousand	$27.7 billion
Income-Based	2.91 million	$169.0 billion
Pay As You Earn	1.19 million	$68.3 billion
Revised PAYE	2.00 million	$108.8 billion
Alternative	690 thousand	$20.9 billion

By Debt Size

Debt Size	# Borrowers	Total Amount
<$5K	8.8 million	$23.1 billion
$5k - $10k	7.7 million	$56.5 billion
$10k - $20k	9.4 million	$135.3 billion
$20k - $40k	9.4 million	$266.5 billion
$40k - $60k	4.0 million	$195.2 billion
$60k - $80k	2.3 million	$161.2 billion
$80k - $100k	1.1 million	$100.1 billion
$100k - $200k	1.9 million	$261.7 billion
>$200k	600 thousand	$182.0 billion

By Borrower Age

Age	# Borrowers	Total Amount
18 or Younger	600 thousand	$1.8 billion
19 - 24	800 thousand	$122.6 billion
25 - 34	15.3 million	$483.8 billion
35 - 49	13.8 million	$511.3 billion
50 - 61	5.7 million	$204.0 billion
62+	1.8 million	$57.9 billion
Not Reported	100 thousand	$200 million

Private Student Loans

• $102 billion the total amount of private student loan debt
• 7.5% the percentage of total outstanding student debt that is from private student loans
• 1.4 million the average amount of students using private student loans each year
• ~$10,000 the average private student loan amount
• 90% the percentage of private student loans taken out with a cosigner
• Over 100 the number of private student loan lenders

Graduate Student Loans

Combined Undergrad and Graduate Debt by ​Degree (as of 2012)

• M.B.A. : $42,000 (11% of grad degrees)
• Master of Science: $50,400 (18% of grad degrees)
• Master of Education: $50,879 (16% of grad degrees)
• Other Master's Degrees: $55,489 (15% of grad degrees)
• Master of Arts: $58,539 (8% of grad degrees)
• Law: $140,616 (4% of grad degrees)
• Medicine/Health Sciences: $161,772 (5% of grad degrees)
• PhDs: Not Reported

Median Combined Undergrad and Graduate Debt Owed at Grad School Graduation

Program	2004	2008	2012
Business Administration	$41,373	$44,496	$42,000
Education Masters	$30,726	$33,910	$50,879
Master of Arts	$37,965	$43,247	$58,539
Master of Science	$34,965	$41,904	$50,400
Other Master's Degrees	$31,650	$46,085	$55,489
MD & Other Health Sciences	$123,203	$127,132	$161,772
Law	$88,634	$90,052	$140,616

Other Interesting Information

• Over 7 million (>2%) of the U.S. population has defaulted on their student loans
• Student loan debt is the second highest form of debt in the U.S., second only to mortgages
• Almost 30% student loan borrowers move back in with their parents after graduation
• Over 34% of borrowers have delayed starting a family because of their debt
• Over 47% of borrowers have delayed buying a car because of their debt
• Over 73% of borrowers have delayed saving for retirement because of their debt
• Around 63% of borrowers have delayed buying a home because of their debt
• Almost 28% borrowers have delayed getting married because of their debt

Sources

​https://lendedu.com/blog/refinance-student-loans/

​https://lendedu.com/blog/private-student-loans/

https://lendedu.com/blog/average-cost-of-college-statistics/​

http://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/student-debt-swells-federal-loans-now-top-a-trillion/

https://clevelandfed.org/newsroom-and-events/publications/forefront/ff-v7n02/ff-20160516-v7n0204-is-there-a-student-loan-crisis.aspx​

​https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/about/data-center/student/portfolio

​http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/

​http://time.com/money/4168510/why-student-loan-crisis-is-worse-than-people-think/

​http://studentdebtcrisis.org/4782-2/

https://static.newamerica.org/attachments/750-the-graduate-student-debt-review/GradStudentDebtReview-Delisle-Final.pdf​

https://studentloans.net/impact-report-july-2016/

https://www.measureone.com/press_details.php?id=8​