A recent study by the College Access and Success ranked Ohio as the state with the seventh-highest level of student debt, with the average 2010 graduate owing $27,713.
Of Ohio students graduating in 2010, 68 percent used loans to help pay for college. Ohio was also ranked seventh among states whose students predominantly used loans to pay for the cost of college.
New Hampshire ranked highest, with the average class of 2010 member owing $31,048, with Maine, Iowa, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Ohio, Indiana, Rhode Island and New York rounding out the top 10.
The study found states in the northeast and Midwest tended to have the highest levels of student debt, while western states had the lowest student debt.
“This is not a new issue,” said Becky Watts, chief of staff to OU President Roderick McDavis. “Ohio University has concern about keeping higher education accessible outside and inside Ohio. Policies in the state control costs for people who pursue higher education.”
The Ohio Board of Regents, which governs the state’s 13 public colleges and universities, caps possible tuition raises at public universities at 3.5 percent each year.
In the 2009-10 school year, the 32,359 OU students across all campuses received a combined 25,000 loans, totaling about $190 million in federal, institutional and private aid.
By comparison, in 2006-07, OU’s 28,442 enrolled students were granted a combined 28,000 loans, totaling about $130 million.
In 2006-07, tuition at OU was $8,496 per year. In 2009-10, tuition was $8,907 per year. After the Ohio Board of Regents ended the tuition freeze, OU raised its tuition to $9,537 per year for the 2010-11 school year.
Some OU students said they aren’t concerned about paying off their loans.
Brittany Parsons, a junior studying Asian studies, said she expects to owe between $34,000 and $40,000 in loans when she graduates. She added, however, that she could earn twice that much each year as a translator or culture specialist.
“Depending on how much you take out and how much income you can expect, the debt can be easily paid off,” Parsons said. “I think the problem is people take out loans and chose a major that doesn’t pay a lot, and they end up paying it back for most or the rest of their lives.”
sf339111@ohiou.edu
