Student debt is mounting pressure on millions of Americans’ wallets. In 2024, nearly 43 million college graduates across the country, or 13% of the population, had “outstanding federal student loan debt,” Nerdwallet reported. That being said, younger generations have chosen to opt out of higher education.
One-third of participants in a 2024 Deloitte Global survey said they chose not to pursue college. Why?
“The leading reasons were financial constraints (32% of Gen Zs and 40% of millennials); family or personal circumstances (26% of Gen Zs and 34% of millennials); and seeking career paths that don’t require higher education degrees, such as vocational training, apprenticeships, or other programs that allow them to gain skills outside of university (24% of Gen Zs and 18% of millennials).”
The more than $1.7 trillion dollars in collective federal and private student loan debt accounts for a large amount of the country’s new record-high debt of $35 trillion.
“College keeps getting progressively more expensive, and so does borrowing money to attend. Federal student loan interest rates are rising to a 12-year high for the upcoming academic year, so it’s important to plan carefully when borrowing,” WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe said in a new report on state-by-state student loan debt comparisons.
“In addition to attending college in a less expensive state and pursuing other avenues of funding like financial aid and grants, students should also carefully calculate how much they can afford to borrow before taking out a loan.”
As college seems to get more expensive every year, figuring out which university makes the most financial sense can make the decision more manageable. Student debt varies by state.
States with the most student debt:
- Mississippi.
- Pennsylvania.
- Delaware.
- West Virginia.
- South Carolina.
States with the least student debt:
- Utah.
- Hawaii.
- Washington.
- California.
- New Mexico.
Paying for college in Utah
According to WalletHub’s report, Utah has the lowest average student debt, and also has the lowest proportion of students with debt, which is less than half of that in South Dakota, the state with the highest proportion of indebted students.
In March of this year, the Utah Board of Higher Education authorized an average tuition increase of 3.3%, which will take effect for the 2024/2025 academic year and apply to only state-supported public colleges and universities.
But to ensure affordably, a representative from the Utah System of Higher Education told the Deseret News, “The Utah Board of Higher Education rigorously evaluates tuition proposals to ensure that institutions are effectively using funds” and that several state financial aid programs are in place to support students:
- Utah Promise Scholarship: The Utah Promise Grant is a statewide scholarship program that expands access to higher education opportunities to all Utahns by providing financial assistance to students who demonstrate financial need.
- Opportunity Scholarship: The Opportunity Scholarship encourages students to complete advanced courses while in high school to prepare academically for college. Students must apply during their senior year of high school. This scholarship can help cover the cost of tuition and fees after other state aid is applied, with a maximum award amount set annually.
- Technical Education Scholarship Program: The Technical Education Scholarship provides financial assistance to students pursuing a technical education certificate in high-demand industries
“Utah maintains some of the lowest tuition rates in the nation by leveraging state funding to minimize costs for students. This approach ensures that Utah’s public colleges and universities offer affordable education without compromising on quality,” the spokesperson added.