The US Department of Education has published a report “Debt after College: Employment, Enrolment, and Student-Reported Stress and Outcomes” on the long-term financial consequences of study loan debt. As the report focuses on the cohorts graduating since 1999, the impact of the 2007-08 crisis can be deduced from the data. In the US, the percentage of students graduating with debt has risen from 49% in 1992/93 to 66% in 2007/08 – with the average amount growing from $15 000 “2009 dollars” in 1992/93 to $ 24 700 in 2007-08.
The data show that students graduating with a study loan debt are less convinced that studying was worth it, have more trouble in making ends meet, are more often forced to delay buying a house and starting a family, and are significantly more often forced to take jobs that are less desirable for them.
