Interesting Student Loan Statistics

Coins super close-up.

Flickr user Reza

A look at some of the main student loan stats offers some interesting insights into the real picture of student loans. For example, for several years in a row, student loan debt has held the dubious distinction of being the second-highest consumer debt category. The leading consumer debt category has consistently been mortgages.

Here are some of the more notable student loan stats and facts.

Statistics on Federal and Private Student Loan Debt

According to EducationData.org, student loan debt in the United States is estimated to be about $1.757 trillion dollars. This includes both federal and private student loans. 

About 43.5 million borrowers have federal student loan debt. Private student loans account for the remaining. 

The average federal student loan debt balance is estimated to be about $37,584. This is much lower than the average total student loan debt, which may be as high as $39,590. This takes into consideration federal and private student loan debt.  

The rate of debt accumulation is showing signs of slowing down. 

The federal government offers a few different loan programs including direct loans, Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL), and Perkins Loans. Currently, direct loans make up 76% of the loans with FFEL making up 23.4% and Perkins the remaining 0.60%.

As of 2021, there has been a drastic drop in the number of students taking out private student loans. Back in 2008, student loan stats showed that outstanding debt was $25.8 billion, compared to the $11.6 billion that it is today.

Student Debt Statistics By Loan Borrowers

The outstanding debt is in several different parts of repayment status. For example, $120 billion under federal direct loans is currently held by students still attending school while only $41.7 billion is in the 6 month grace period after graduation. $554 billion is in repayment, but over 4 million students and graduates are currently defaulting on their loans. They owe about $78.9 billion all together and make up about 12.2% of the people who have taken out direct loans.

There are also different repayment plans that are available for direct loans. About 11.3 million students or graduates have a repayment plan where they’ll pay it back in less than 10 years, but another 1.71 million students will take over 10 years. Nearly 3 million students are also taking advantage of Income Based Repayment and another 1 million students or graduates are using Pay as You Earn Repayment plans (PAYE).

Sallie Mae logo.

3 Repayment Options

Variable rates from 5.54% - 15.70% APR with auto-debit

Learn More

Statistics On Student Loan Debt By Type of University 

Students attending public universities take on an average of $31,400 in student loan debt to acquire a bachelor’s degree. Students attending private, non-profit universities take on about $35,983 in student loan debt. And students attending private, for-profit universities borrow much more, averaging about $42,551 in student loan debt. 

Statistics On Federal Student Loan Debt By Degree 

Associate’s degree holders have an average federal student debt of about $23,500. Borrowers holding bachelor’s degrees have an average of $34,800 in federal student loan debt. Graduate students owe an average of $90,170 in cumulative federal student loan debt.

An estimated 54.2% of students who have completed graduate school are still paying off their undergrad federal student loan debt. 

An estimated 74.5% of professional doctorate holders are still paying off their undergraduate federal student loan debt. Another 73.5% owe for undergraduate school. 

Some student loan stats suggest that Doctors of Medicine are most likely to have unpaid loans from both undergrad and grad school. An estimated 80.3% owe undergraduate school debt, and 81% owe graduate school debt. 

There are definitely lots of student debt statistics out there surrounding both, private and federal loans. However, it’s interesting to note that while the amount of money taken out in private loans has gone down since 2008, the actual amount of total debt has increased by over 38%! This could be attributed to the fact that college tuition has increased dramatically over the years. 

Are you looking for student loans? Use College Raptor’s free Student Loan Finder to compare lenders and interest rates side by side!

 

Lender Rates (APR) Eligibility
Citizens logo.
5.50%-16.12%* Variable
3.99%-15.61%* Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT CITIZENS
Sallie Mae logo.
5.54% - 15.70% Variable
3.99% - 15.49% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT SALLIE MAE
Credibe company logo.
4.63% - 17.99% Variable
3.49% - 17.99% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT CREDIBLE
Lendkey company logo.
6.00% - 13.75% Variable
3.99% - 13.75% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT LENDKEY
Ascent company logo.
5.66% - 14.72% Variable
3.69% - 14.56% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT ASCENT
3.70% - 8.75% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT ISL
Earnest company logo.
5.62% - 16.85% Variable
3.69% - 16.49% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT EARNEST
5.00% - 14.22% Variable
3.69% - 14.22% Fixed
Undergraduate and Graduate
VISIT ELFI
College Raptor is not a loan lender and does not assume responsibility for suggesting a loan to a user who may not be eligible for it. Rates, terms, conditions, eligibility, approval, and other considerations are the decisions of the lenders and may vary depending on which lender or marketplace the user selects. We urge users to carefully consider and review all loan options and terms before committing to taking out a loan.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Join thousands of students and parents learning about finding the right college, admissions secrets, scholarships, financial aid, and more.