PA Has Nation's 2nd-Highest Amount Of Average Student Debt: Study

With student debt becoming an increasingly discussed issue among Democratic presidential candidates, a new study reveals that Pennsylvania has the nation's second-highest amount of average student debt.

Financial data site WalletHub on Wednesday released a report on state student loan debt, comparing the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 12 different metrics. The study arrives as Democratic presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have supported canceling student debt while other candidates have proposed refinancing options, grant increases and free education at community colleges.

The various proposals come as massive amounts of student debt keep piling up. Outstanding college loan balances disclosed on credit reports stood at $1.49 trillion at the end of the first quarter of 2018, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. A recent study by the Center for Microeconomic Data showed that as of the first quarter of this year, 10.9 percent of all student loan debts were at least 90 days or more delinquent or in default.

"For many borrowers, the burden of paying back their loans is enormous and impacts almost every decision they make after graduation," said Stephanie Genkin, adjunct instructor and founder of New York University's My Financial Planner. "To reduce the amount of debt taken on for higher education, students should consider lower cost schools, such as in-state universities or local colleges. It doesn't make sense to go to the school of your dreams if it means borrowing $100,000 to become a social worker."

Here's how Pennsylvania ranked in various categories in the WalletHub report.

• 2nd: Average student debt.

• 5th: Proportions of students with debt.

• 7th: Availability of paid internships.

• 8th: Unemployment rate of population aged 25 to 34.

• 11th: Percent of student loan borrowers aged 50 and over.

• 12th: Student debt as a percentage of income (adjusted for cost of living).

• 20th: Grant growth.

• 25th: Percentage of student loans past due or in default.

• 29th: Availability of student jobs.

You can read the entire WalletHub student debt study here.

Photo: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during a campaign stop at town hall in Peterborough, N.H., Monday, July 8, 2019.