Women’s Student Loan Debt Nearly Twice As Men’s

I suppose it's funny that this could somewhat piggy back on last night's post on the deflation of the college bubble:

Women owe about $890 billion of the country’s $1.48 trillion student loan debt, nearly double the $490 billion owed by men, placing them at a financial disadvantage as they begin their careers, according to a recently released report from the American Association of University Women (AAUW).

The study, which analyzed data from the U.S. Department Education from the 2015-2016 school year, also found that women graduating with bachelor’s degree owe on average $2,700 more in student loans than men do. Women, who account for 56 percent of enrolled college students, are far more likely than men to graduate owing money — 71 percent for female grads vs. 66 percent for male grads, according to the AAUW.

And this stat was broken down further according to race:

Black women graduate with the most college debt, averaging about $30,400, topping the roughly $22,000 white women owe and the $19,500 white men owe.

Furthermore, women with college degrees and full-time jobs tend to earn less money to pay down their student debt, making on average 26 percent less than their male colleagues. The picture is even bleaker for black and Latina women with bachelor’s degrees and full-time jobs: They earn on average 37 percent and 34 percent less, respectively. than white men and, as a result, often struggle to repay their loans, the study says.

If you keep reading article you're going to see it, this gender pay gap! For some reason not explained here Black and Latin women earn less than white males. Kinda wild when you think about it.

The solution according the the aforementions AAUW is to strengthen pell grant programs. For me I benefited from pell grants however I chose to complete my baccalaureate from an expensive private liberal arts college so the fact that I borrowed money negated the benefits of those grants.

The answer for both men and women of any race/ethnicity is they need to have some skin in the game as far as college. Have a viable plan and don't just depend on federal aid or the financial planning of your parents, put your own money up. If it's something you're serious about show what you have, this is what I wished that I had when I graduated from high school.

If you graduated from high school this year it's still not too late for you to develop some financial saavy as far as your education. It shouldn't matter if you decide you have to take a break from school for now if tuition is going a bit higher as you matriculate.

I can also add, that college isn't and shouldn't be the answer for everyone!