Black-White Disparity in Student Loan Debt More than Triples after Graduation. Evidence Speaks Reports, Vol 2, #3

The moment they earn their bachelor's degrees, black college graduates owe $7,400 more on average than their white peers ($23,400 versus $16,000, including non-borrowers in the averages). But over the next few years, the black-white debt gap more than triples to a whopping $25,000. Differences...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCenter on Children and Families at Brookings
Main Authors Scott-Clayton, Judith, Li, Jing
Format Report
LanguageEnglish
Published Center on Children and Families at Brookings 20.10.2016
Subjects
African American Students
Change Strategies
Cohort Analysis
College Graduates
Debt (Financial)
Disadvantaged
Disproportionate Representation
Educational Benefits
Family Income
Loan Repayment
Parent Background
Racial Differences
Social Discrimination
Student Loan Programs
White Students
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Summary:The moment they earn their bachelor's degrees, black college graduates owe $7,400 more on average than their white peers ($23,400 versus $16,000, including non-borrowers in the averages). But over the next few years, the black-white debt gap more than triples to a whopping $25,000. Differences in interest accrual and graduate school borrowing lead to black graduates holding nearly $53,000 in student loan debt four years after graduation--almost twice as much as their white counterparts. While previous work has documented racial disparities in student borrowing, delinquencies, and defaults, this report provides new evidence that racial gaps in total debt are far larger than even recent reports have recognized, far larger now than in the past, and correlated with troubling trends in the economy and in the for-profit sector. We conclude with a discussion of policy implications.