Center for American Progress

The Student Debt Problem Is Worse Than We Imagined
In the News

The Student Debt Problem Is Worse Than We Imagined

Author Ben Miller explains how student loans have turned college into a debt trap for many.

Millions of students will arrive on college campuses soon, and they will share a similar burden: college debt. The typical student borrower will take out $6,600 in a single year, averaging $22,000 in debt by graduation, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

There are two ways to measure whether borrowers can repay those loans: There’s what the federal government looks at to judge colleges, and then there’s the real story. The latter is coming to light, and it’s not pretty.

The above excerpt was originally published in The New York Times. Click here to view the full article.

The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. A full list of supporters is available here. American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.

Authors

Ben Miller

Vice President, Postsecondary Education

Just released!

Interactive: Mapping access to abortion by congressional district

Click here