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2018 Student Loan Debt Statistics

By Joe Messinger, CFP®

July 11, 2018

3 min READ

We’re honored this week to be presenting this guest blog post from Jeff Gitlen and LendEDU.com. LendEDU is a “marketplace for private student loans, student loan refinancing & consolidation, and personal loans, among other financial products.” LendEDU was created “to help student loan borrowers and consumers find transparency without damaging their credit” through “transparent pricing and education.” Article updated: 4/13/2018

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.

With all of the different types of student loans, and with the way they have changed over the years, there is tons of information out there on the topic.

Read on to learn about the student loan debt statistics in the United States.

General Information

$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 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
$600.0 billion
Deferment
3.3 million
$103.0 billion
Forbearance
2.6 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

More Americans hold student loan debt than the population of over 200 countries

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​

 

 

Joe Messinger, CFP®

Author

Joe Messinger, CFP®
Joe is a leading authority on late-stage college funding. He frequently speaks to organizations and parent groups such as BMI Credit Union, Westerville City Schools, At the Core, CollegeWire, and I Know I Can, among others. He is also a highly regarded thought leader in the financial planning community. He is frequently asked to speak at industry conferences about his College Pre-Approval™ process providing Continued Education for CPA’s and CFP® through through the FPA, XYPN, and OSCPA and has been published in the Journal for Financial Planning.

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