The Institute for College Access & Success has released its ninth annual report, Student Debt and the Class of 2013. The study found that student debt levels continue to rise with about 7 of every 10 college graduates accumulating some debt. The average debt level was $28,400.
The report also identifies the colleges and universities where on average students have the lowest level of debt upon graduation. Among these schools is Princeton University, the Ivy League institution that eliminated student loans from financial aid packages and provides generous aid packages for low- and middle-income families. But many of the schools on the low debt list enroll large number of low-income students. These schools are able to graduate students with low levels of debt because their students generally qualify for federal and state grants that cover all or most of their college costs.
Among the low-debt schools are several historically Black colleges and universities. Among the low debt HBCUs are Howard University in Washington, D.C., Fort Valley State University in Georgia, and Hampton University in Virginia.
But there are also some HBCUs on the report’s list of colleges and universities that graduate students with a high amount of debt. These include Kentucky State University, The Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, and Texas Southern University.
