President Biden's recent announcement regarding student debt relief has brought the issue to center stage across Pennsylvania and the U.S. Access to quality higher education is so important to Pennsylvania's individuals and families, yet the high cost of college in the state has both limited who has access to a good education and, for those…

A college degree or credential is a crucial stepping-stone to the middle class, and American colleges and universities play an essential role in building a more prosperous, equitable country. However, too many colleges routinely and disproportionately enroll students who end up struggling to repay or, worse, default on their student debt. "A…

Student debt is growing, as is the mental health crisis among Black borrowers. While the situation is dire, it is also a byproduct of failed and intentionally racist policies going back generations, which means it can be solved by better public policies. This brief is the second in a four-part series using qualitative data from the National Black…

When a college closes, it can derail the education of many students, leaving them with loans but no degree. Those who cannot complete their education may be eligible to have their federal student loans forgiven through a "closed school discharge" from the Department of Education (Education), but this process has changed in recent years.…

Student debt levels were already pronounced before the pandemic hit, with $91.1 billion in annual federal student lending in 2019-20, up from $20.7 billion in 1990-91. Over that same period, per-student borrowing rose from $2,110 to $6,276, after adjusting for inflation. Evidence available as of Nov. 20, 2021, suggests that the COVID-19 downturn…

The volume and number of federal student loans, which provide financing to make higher education more accessible, have grown over the past few decades. In 2017, the most recent year for which detailed information was available, $96 billion in new federal student loans was disbursed to 8.6 million students, compared with $36 billion (in 2017…

Today, approximately 43 million Americans hold a federal student loan. When these borrowers fall behind on payments, they become delinquent on their loans; once the loans reach 270 days past due, borrowers are in default. As of March 2021, roughly 1 in 5 borrowers was in default, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education. Failing to…

More than a million federal student loan borrowers default each year, and the U.S. Department of Education reports that as of June 2020, roughly 1 in 5 borrowers with federal student loans was in default. Since that time, the coronavirus pandemic and related economic downturn have continued to take a significant toll on households and businesses…

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators' (NASFAA's) National Student Aid Profile is an annual publication designed to give a high-level overview of the federal student financial aid programs that provide funding to millions of students each year. This profile includes an overview of: (1) The Federal Pell Grant Program; (2) The…

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators' (NASFAA's) National Student Aid Profile is an annual publication designed to give a high-level overview of the federal student financial aid programs that provide funding to millions of students each year. This profile includes an overview of: (1) The Federal Pell Grant Program; (2) The…

Racial inequities in higher education and the labor market have led to disparate outcomes in student loan borrowing and repayment by race, with Black borrowers holding more student debt and being more likely to default on it compared with white borrowers. Student loan default, which helps perpetuate the racial wealth gap by disproportionately…

The objective of this review was to evaluate the results of Federal Student Aid's (FSA) process for suspending involuntary collection and refunding payments involuntarily collected on defaulted Department-held loans in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. The information presented in this report was obtained and analyzed through interviews,…

Between 1965 and 2010, most federal student loans were issued by private lending institutions and guaranteed by the government, and most student loan borrowers made fixed monthly payments over a set period--typically 10 years. Since 2010, however, all federal student loans have been issued directly by the federal government, and borrowers have…

During the COVID-19 pandemic, undergraduate enrollment dropped by nearly 10%. Yet those who are attending college are still shouldering a hefty financial burden. This issue brief examines a survey of 1,521 women in New York City to learn more about their experiences with student loan debt during the pandemic. The results indicate glaring…

This brief reviews the details of major proposals from policy makers and policy organizations to streamline and reform income-driven repayment of federal student loans. The brief identifies encouraging consensus on a number of important details, as well as some areas of remaining divergence.