Whew! Top 10 Colleges With Highest (And Lowest) Student Debt

Some colleges are working hard to keep student debt under control, but others really stink. U.S. News and World Report has released top 10 lists of the schools with the most and least student debt, and the contrast is astonishing.

Kentucky's Alice Lloyd College had the lowest student debt of $3,108, with only 32 percent of 2010 graduates having taken on loans. In second place was Princeton University, ranked as one of the two best universities nationally by the same publication, with 24 percent of 2010 graduates owing an average of $4,385.

The school with the most student debt was Eastern Nazarene College, in Massachusetts, where 87 percent of 2010 graduates owe an average of $51,336. Following closely were Ohio Northern University and California’s Holy Names University.

“As colleges and universities across the country raise tuition to combat funding shortfalls, students need to come up with more money to finance their degrees,” reads the ranking. “While grants and scholarships are available, few students graduate without accumulating some loan debt.”

Schools with the Most Student Debt

Name – percent of 2010 graduates who borrowed – average student debt

1. Eastern Nazarene College (MA) — 87 percent — $51,336
2. Ohio Northern University (OH) — 85 percent — $48,886
3. Holy Names University (CA) — 79.3 percent — $48,833
4. University of New England (ME) — 88 percent — $47,293
5. Mount Ida College (MA) — 80.3 percent — $46,393
6. La Salle University (PA) — 84 percent — $45,888 41
7. Kettering University (MI) — 78 percent — $45,570
8. St. Joseph’s University (PA) — 62 percent — $45,530
9. Clark Atlanta University (GA) — 93 percent — $45,227
10. Bard College at Simon’s Rock (MA) — 44 percent — $44,910

Schools with the Least Student Debt

Name – percent of 2010 graduates who borrowed – average student debt

1. Alice Lloyd College (KY) — 32 percent— $3,108
2. Princeton University (NJ) — 24 percent— $4,385
3. Anna Maria College (MA) — 77 percent— $5,152
4. College of the Ozarks (MO) — 11 percent— $5,389
5. Berea College (KY) — 73 percent— $5,836
6. Reinhardt University (GA) — 62 percent— $6,131
7. Clearwater Christian College (FL) — 51 percent— $6,365
8. California State University— Bakersfield — 72 percent— $6,730
9. East-West University (IL) — 80 percent— $7,000
10. Cameron University (OK) — 32 percent— $7,200

Even among the schools with the least debt, there was modest variation in the number of students who took on debt. At the College of the Ozarks, for example, only 11 percent of graduates took out loans, while 77 percent of students at Anna Maria College, in Massachusetts, took on debt. Graduates at both schools ended up owing slightly more than $5,000 on average.

Student debt has ballooned since the 1990s to more than a trillion dollars, fueling policy debates about tuition and education that affect many students and all taxpayers.

Among the 1,028 schools that submitted graduate data, about 68 percent of graduates borrowed money to pay for school, according to the ranking. In 2010, the average graduate who had borrowed funds owed nearly $25,000.

But the top ten lists don’t capture some of the worst offenders in the world of higher education.

Most for-profit colleges—which land students with more debt, lower salaries, and a higher unemployment rate than traditional colleges—are considered “unranked” by U.S. News and World Report, in part because of dubious entrance requirements. 

For-profit institutions often target students who were tracked neither for college nor vocational work during high school, a segment that researchers have termed the underserved third—many of whom will fail to graduate after racking up debt. In fact, some 44 percent of individuals who default on their student loans attended for-profit schools.

(Read More About For-Profit College Accountability at Campus Progress)

Issues surrounding student debt and loan financing have remained a simmering theme at Occupy Wall Street and related demonstrations, with some organizers calling on graduates to refuse to make loan payments until a progressive demands list is met.

The graduate debt rankings are part of U.S. News' Short List series, which focuses on particular data points relevant to prospective students.

Jon Christian is a reporter with Campus Progress. Follow him on Twitter @Jon_Christian.

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