Costs & Compensation: College Debt
U.S. Students are graduating college with ever higher rates of debt; according to U.S. News and World report the average 2016 graduate had roughly $37,000 in debt. As families, universities, and policy makers attempt to tackle this ever mounting problem, this site provides a brief glimpse into the increasing tuition and debt, and spending at universities. Click on the link below to read'Examining the Role of University President and Football Coach Salaries in Student Debt'
Combined Aid: 1977-2016
This graph shows the growth of student aid a whole. In 1971 the Total Aid was $25,632 million dollars. For the 2015-2016 academic year the total debt was an estimated $240,941. In 2015-2016 undergradute students accounted for $184,091 million while graduate students accounted for $56,851 million. The smaller total debt of graduate students reflects the significantly smaller amount of graduate vs. undergraduate students; per student graduates have more debt on average. From 2010 on there has been a slight decline in the total amount, however the sum is stil enormously high. Sources: The College Board.
Aid per Student: 1977-2017
Aid per student at Public and Private universities from 1977 to 2016, in 2015 dollars. In 1977 the average student accepted 200 dollars of total aid (in 2015 dollars); in 2015-2016 the average student accepted $16,304 dollars, more than 80 times that of a 1970 student. In 2016 the average undergraduate and student accepted over $14,000 and $27,000 dollars respectively. Source: The College Board
Student Debt Greater than 40%
Since the early 2000s the percentage of students with heavy debt has grown significantly. Measured in 2012 dollars, this graph shows the growth in students with $40,000 or more of debt. From 2003-04 to 2011-12 the percentages increase substantially. For all universities rates increase from a mere 2% of students to 8%. Public universities saw an increase from just 1% to 12% and private universities saw a rates spike from 4% to 20%. By 2011 a massive 48% of all students with Bachelor's degrees from for-profit schools had 40,000 or more debt. Source: The College Board
Student Debt Since the Nineties: Public vs Private
This graph provides a closer look at how attending a private vs. public school effects the average student's debt. In 1999 attending a private school meant an increase of debt by roughly $3,000 dollars ($20,900 vs $23,900). By the 2014-2015 school year however students attending private school faced on average roughly $5,000 more in debt ($26,800 vs $31,400). Source: The College Board
Tuition and Fees: 1976 to 2016
Since 1976 tuition and fees at both private and public universities have increased drastically. In 2016 dollars, the average tuition and fees in 1976 were $2,600 and $10,680 for public and private schools. For the 2016-2017 school year the average tuition and fees were $9,650 and $33,840. At public universities the current tuition and fees are 3.7 times what they were in 1976, and at private universities current rates are 3.14 times what they were. The steepness of thenes indicate that costs are set to continue rapidly rising. Source: The College Board
Room and Board: 1976 to 2016
Many costs besides tuition and fees have risen drastically. For example, this graph shows the increase of Room and Board Prices from 1976 to 2016. In 1976 the average room and board for private and public students was roughly similar, with private students paying slightly more than $6,000 (in 2016 dollars) and public students paying slightly less thatn $6,000. For the 2016-2017 school year however private students pay closer to $12,000 dollars and public students paying sightly more than $10,000 dollars. Source: The College Board
2016 NCAA Football Coach Salaries
In 2016 USA Today compiled the salaries for coaches at 119 universities. This graph shows the wide range of salaries, from the lowest at New Mexico State University with salary of $376,0444 to the highest at University of Michigan with a salary of $9,004,000. The 2016 University of Michigan tuition and fees for undergraduate in-state freshman was $14,402; it would take roughly the equivalent of tuition for 625 students to pay the coach's salary. Source: USA Today
University President Salaries: 2009 and 2013
Presidential compensation at both public and private universities has risen by an alarming amount. While my analysis has found no correlation between presidential salary and student debt, the rise in salary is still an interesting look at university spending. Using a sample size of 458 schools, this graph shows the average presidential salaries (annual year or fiscal year) for public and private university presidents. In 2009 the average presidential salary was $479,938 with public university presidents earning $389,137 and private university presidents earning $514,125 on average. By 2013 the mean presidential pay had risen by more than $70,000 dollars; the overall mean was $551,600 with public presidents earning $472,835 (an increase of $83,698) and private school presidents earning $581,255 (an increase of $67,130). Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education