It’s graduation season – and college campuses across the country have been sending off new graduates with diplomas and visions of a rosy future. But while most are looking ahead, if these recent grads reflected on their student debt levels and the decisions they could have made differently to reduce this debt – what advice would they share with future college students and their families?
Fidelity Investments www.fidelity.com announced the results of its second Cost-Conscious College Graduates Study, which examines how the cost of college and resulting student debt levels have affected the choices and future financial outlook of the college classes of 2013, 2012 and 2011. Among the findings:
- 70% of the class of 2013 is graduating with college-related debt, averaging $35,200;
- 50% are surprised with how much debt they accumulated;
- 39% would have made different choices related to college planning had they better understood the debt consequences;
- 85% of all recent college grads say they contributed at least some of their own personal savings to their college tuition and related expenses;
- Of those, 27% contributed more than $10,000;
- 50% of recent college grads said that paying off their student loan debt is a top financial goal;
- 54% of students graduating with student loan debt are expecting it to take more than nine years to pay off.
Current Issue - April 2024