Increases in Graduate Student Debt in the US: 2000 to 2016
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Increases in Graduate Student Debt in the US: 2000 to 2016 Karen L. Webber1 · Rachel Burns2 Received: 5 December 2019 / Accepted: 22 September 2020 © Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract With enrollments rising in recent years, more than half of all graduate level students in US institutions take on educational loans. Using data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS), this study examined educational debt for graduate and professional students in 2000 and 2016 and explored whether significant predictors of debt changed over time. Results show that those with undergraduate debt were more likely to take on loans for graduate school and that Black/African American students borrowed significantly more than graduate students in other racial/ethnic groups. Findings also showed that institutional reliance on tuition and being Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino were more significantly associated with borrowing in 2016 than in 2000. Consistent with notions of human capital, graduate level education may offer higher long-term salaries and higher quality of life. However, increasing graduate level debt may curtail other life choices, may discourage students from enrolling and persisting, or may motivate degree earners to pursue different program or career options due to accumulated loans. Keywords Graduate education · Student debt · NPSAS · Hurdle regression · Graduate school debt
Introduction and Study Objectives With more than $40 billion in federal and private aid obtained to finance U.S. graduate education in 2016–2017, loans for graduate education have reached a record high (College Board Advocacy and Policy Center 2017; see Fig. 1). Increases in tuition have contributed to the need to borrow for all students. However, unlike their undergraduate peers, graduate and professional students face some different challenges in financing their education, including a decline in the number of teaching and research assistantships available (Jordan and Christie 2017), and fewer opportunities for federal and state grants (NCES 2015). For a variety of reasons, a growing number of today’s graduate students must rely on private and * Karen L. Webber [email protected] Rachel Burns [email protected] 1
The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
2
RTI International, Raleigh, NC, USA
13
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Research in Higher Education
Average Amount Borrowed for Graduate Education $120,000
$100,000
$80,000
$60,000
$40,000
$20,000
2000
2004 Average
2008 Masters
Doctoral
2012
2016
Professional
Results reported for borrowers only. Values reported in 2016 dollars. SOURCE: NCES TrendStats for NPSAS 2000-2016
Fig. 1 Borrowing trends for graduate education, 2000–2016. Results reported for borrowers only. Values reported in 2016 dollars. Source: NCES TrendStats for NPSAS 2000–2016
federal loans. Although the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 allows students to finance the full amount of their graduate level program, decreases in government-guaranteed private loans following the College Cost Reduction an
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