Missouri
Student Debt Among
Lowest in the Nation
With
college costs rising faster than inflation, student debt has
increased in the past decade and more students are accruing that debt.
By the time they graduate, nearly two-thirds of students at
four-year colleges and universities have student loan debt (66.4% in
2004), according to The Project on Student Debt. Less than one-half
of four-year graduates had student loans in 1993.
Nationally, debt levels over the past decade for graduating
seniors with student loans more than doubled from $9,250 to
$19,200-a 108% increase (58% after accounting for inflation).i
The average student loan debt for Missourians is among the lowest in the nation, ranking 14th lowest in the U.S. at $16,505. In Missouri public school debt averaged $15,643 while private school debt was $18,181.
| State | Overall
Average Debt 2005 |
Rank Among States 2005 (Overall) | Average Debt Public 2005 |
Rank Among States 2005 (Public) | Average Debt Private 2005 |
Rank Among States 2005 (Private) |
| UT | $11,709 | 1 | $11,067 | 1 | $13,309 | 1 |
| HI | $14,290 | 2 | $12,841 | 3 | $16,915 | 7 |
| DE | $14,728 | 3 | $15,200 | 10 | $13,728 | 2 |
| MD | $14,822 | 4 | $14,154 | 4 | $16,533 | 4 |
| CA | $15,203 | 5 | $12,542 | 2 | $21,596 | 36 |
| KY | $15,861 | 6 | $16,224 | 23 | $14,661 | 3 |
| AK | $16,011 | 7 | $15,184 | 9 | $31,494 | 48 |
| WV | $16,041 | 8 | $14,924 | 7 | $20,475 | 27 |
| MS | $16,065 | 9 | $15,431 | 12 | $17,853 | 9 |
| GA | $16,131 | 10 | $15,292 | 11 | $18,235 | 14 |
| NM | $16,137 | 11 | $15,815 | 16 | $18,921 | 18 |
| CO | $16,346 | 12 | $15,840 | 17 | $20,201 | 24 |
| NJ | $16,393 | 13 | $14,658 | 6 | $21,280 | 33 |
| MO | $16,505 | 14 | $15,643 | 13 | $18,181 | 13 |
| VA | $16,558 | 15 | $16,124 | 20 | $17,817 | 8 |
| NC | $16,661 | 16 | $16,010 | 19 | $18,069 | 12 |
| NV | $16,687 | 17 | $16,662 | 29 | $18,000 | 10 |
| WY | $16,741 | 18 | $16,741 | 30 | N/A | N/A |
| KS | $16,753 | 19 | $16,448 | 26 | $18,010 | 11 |
| AR | $17,004 | 20 | $17,058 | 32 | $16,844 | 6 |
| OK | $17,063 | 21 | $15,813 | 15 | $23,397 | 44 |
| IL | $17,089 | 22 | $15,850 | 18 | $18,431 | 15 |
| TX | $17,176 | 23 | $16,400 | 24 | $20,529 | 28 |
| WI | $17,224 | 24 | $16,154 | 21 | $20,987 | 30 |
| MT | $17,314 | 25 | $16,539 | 27 | $23,937 | 45 |
| AL | $17,599 | 26 | $17,337 | 33 | $18,683 | 17 |
| AZ | $17,678 | 27 | $16,564 | 28 | $32,504 | 49 |
| SC | $17,719 | 28 | $18,228 | 34 | $16,644 | 5 |
| NE | $17,792 | 29 | $16,850 | 31 | $19,546 | 19 |
| MA | $18,169 | 30 | $14,326 | 5 | $19,953 | 22 |
| FL | $18,303 | 31 | $16,402 | 25 | $21,282 | 34 |
| NY | $18,795 | 32 | $15,015 | 8 | $21,138 | 32 |
| MI | $18,942 | 33 | $18,526 | 37 | $21,020 | 31 |
| LA | $19,024 | 34 | $18,751 | 39 | $20,025 | 23 |
| TN | $19,165 | 35 | $19,568 | 45 | $18,641 | 16 |
| USi | $19,200 |
- |
$17,250 | - | ND | - |
| OH | $19,259 | 36 | $18,854 | 41 | $19,938 | 21 |
| ID | $19,299 | 37 | $18,779 | 40 | $24,310 | 46 |
| OR | $19,420 | 38 | $19,050 | 43 | $20,295 | 25 |
| CT | $19,440 | 39 | $15,787 | 14 | $21,769 | 38 |
| VT | $19,482 | 40 | $18,875 | 42 | $20,564 | 29 |
| IN | $19,518 | 41 | $18,614 | 38 | $21,679 | 37 |
| WA | $19,565 | 42 | $18,399 | 36 | $22,365 | 42 |
| SD | $19,724 | 43 | $19,723 | 46 | $19,729 | 20 |
| ME | $20,239 | 44 | $19,185 | 44 | $22,284 | 41 |
| MN | $20,560 | 45 | $18,393 | 35 | $23,208 | 43 |
| PA | $20,775 | 46 | $20,113 | 47 | $21,493 | 35 |
| RI | $20,798 | 47 | $16,200 | 22 | $22,216 | 40 |
| ND | $22,682 | 48 | $22,839 | 49 | $20,380 | 26 |
| IA | $22,727 | 49 | $23,198 | 50 | $22,184 | 39 |
| NH | $22,793 | 50 | $21,469 | 48 | $24,672 | 47 |
| DC | $20,846 |
- |
$16,270 |
- |
$21,211 |
- |
Student Debt and the Class of
2005: Average Debt by State, Sector, and School, The Project on
Student Debt, August 2006, www.projectonstudentdebt.org
ND=No Data
iCalculations by the Project on Student Debt from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS), 1993 and 2004 Undergraduates, Data Analysis System (DAS).
