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Cited by 388Higher Education Research StudiesFinancial Literacy, Pension, Retirement AnalysisPolitics, Economics, and Education Policy

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 51 of the 136 references it cites were found in a registry or an index, and 85 are not checked yet.

Student Loans: Do College Students Borrow Too Much—Or Not Enough?

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Avery, Christopher, Turner, Sarah·2012·Journal of Economic Perspectives
DOI 10.1257/jep.26.1.165
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Abstract

Total student loan debt rose to over $800 billion in June 2010, overtaking total credit card debt outstanding for the first time. By the time this article sees print, the continually updated Student Loan Debt Clock will show an accumulated total of roughly $1 trillion. Borrowing to finance educational expenditures has been increasing—more than quadrupling in real dollars since the early 1990s. The sheer magnitude of these figures has led to increased public commentary on the level of student borrowing. We move the discussion of student loans away from anecdote by establishing a framework for considering the use of student loans in the optimal financing of collegiate investments. From a financial perspective, enrolling in college is equivalent to signing up for a lottery with large expected gains—indeed, the figures presented here suggest that college is, on average, a better investment today than it was a generation ago—but it is also a lottery with significant probabilities of both larger positive, and smaller or even negative, returns. We look to available—albeit limited—evidence to assess which types of students are likely to be borrowing too much or too little.

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Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Baum Sandra, 2003, Journal of Student Financial Aid, 33, 7
  2. McPherson Michael, 2011, Wall Street Journal

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Metadata

Authors
Avery, C., & Turner, S.
Affiliations
  • Harvard University (US)
  • University of Virginia (US)
ORCID
Avery, Christopher
Venue
Journal of Economic Perspectives
Publisher
American Economic Association
Published
2012-02-01
Volume
26
Issue
1
Pages
165-192
ISSN
0895-3309 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1257/jep.26.1.165
OpenAlex
W2080973810
Cited by
385
References
52
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 18 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 32 · 2020: 28 · 2019: 37 · 2018: 28 · 2017: 53 · 2016: 28 · 2015: 53 · 2014: 33 · 2013: 15 · 2012: 5
FWCI
164.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • The Journal of Economic Perspectives (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › Higher Education Research Studies
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Finance › Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Politics, Economics, and Education Policy
Keywords
student loans, student debt, college financing, educational investment, credit card debt, student borrowing behavior, college enrollment

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