This year the price of college reached a record high. According to figures from an annual College Board report, the average cost of per year of tuition is up more 8.3 percent for public 4 year colleges and up 4.5 percent for private schools. The average college student now finishes school with between $22,000 and $28,000 of debt. In total, Americans currently owe nearly a trillion dollars in student loans – that’s more than they owe on credit cards. President Obama addressed the issue of student debt in a speech in Denver on Wednesday, announcing a new program to lower monthly student loan payments. One student saddled with debt is Chris Galloway. He graduated in Stony Brook University in 2008 with $14,000 in loans and he can’t afford to pay them. He asks Ron Lieber, personal finance reporter for The New York Times, for some advice.
Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you. We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll help us unlock a matching gift of $67,000!