Pa. college grads 2nd worst in nation for average student loan debt [View all]
http://articles.mcall.com/2012-10-18/news/mc-student-loans-20121018_1_student-loan-debt-college-students-private-debt
Excerpts:
"PA's college graduates were burdened with the second-highest student loan debt in the country last year ...They left campus with $29,959 in loans on average, or 15 percent more than the national average of $26,600, The Institute for College Access and Success found in its annual Project on Student Debt.
The college access institute's vice president ... cited two reasons for the high debt load of Pennsylvania students:
"Our sticker prices are higher than the national average," she said, referring to the cost of tuition, fees and other expenses at both public and private schools in the state.
Pennsylvania students receive less financial aid than those in other states, she said. "That has to do with decisions that people in Harrisburg make."
Last year, Pennsylvania lawmakers cut funding to the 14 state-owned universities by nearly 20 percent. None of that funding was restored in the current budget."