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http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dsp01td96k567q| Title: | The debt divide: The racial and class bias behind the "new normal" of student borrowing |
| Contributors: | Huelsman, Mark |
| Keywords: | College costs—United States Student loans—United States Finance, Personal—United States Education, Higher—United States—Finance Race discrimination—Economic aspects—United States Minorities—United States—Economic condition |
| Issue Date: | May-2015 |
| Publisher: | Demos |
| Place of Publication: | New York |
| Description: | Today, taking out loans is the primary way individuals pay for college. This report provides a comprehensive look at how the “new normal” of debt-financed college impacts the whole pipeline of decision-making related to college. This includes, whether to attend college at all, what type college to attend and whether to complete a degree, all the way to a host of choices about what to do for a living, and whether to save for retirement or buy a home. In an America where Black and Latino households have just a fraction of the wealth of white households, where communities of color have for decades been shut out of traditional ladders of economic opportunity, a system based entirely on acquiring debt to get ahead may have very different impacts on some communities over others. Our analysis reveals a system that is deeply biased along class and racial lines. Our debt-financed system not only results in higher loan balances for low-income, Black and Latino students, but also results in high numbers of low-income students and students of color dropping out without receiving a credential. In addition, our debt-based system may be fundamentally impacting the post-college lives of those who are forced to take on debt to attend and complete college. Our findings include: Black and low-income students borrow more, and more often, to receive a bachelor’s degree, even at public institutions; Associate’s degree borrowing has spiked particularly among Black students over the past decade; Students at for-profit institutions face the highest debt burdens; Black and Latino students are dropping out with debt at higher rates than white students; Graduates with student loan debt report lower levels of job satisfaction when initially entering the workforce; Average debt levels are beyond borrowing thresholds that are deemed by research to be “positive”; While those with a college degree are more likely to save or buy a home, student debt could be acting as a barrier. |
| URI: | http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dsp01td96k567q |
| Related resource: | https://www.demos.org/sites/default/files/publications/Mark-Debt%20divide%20Final%20(SF).pdf |
| Appears in Collections: | Monographic reports and papers (Publicly Accessible) |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DebtdivideFinal.pdf | 368.26 kB | Adobe PDF | View/Download |
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