<p>The debt numbers reported are highly misleading and mask the reality of education financing. Unlike grad students, college student cannot qualify for large educational loans in their own name. </p>
<p>The debt numbers reported are the STUDENT’s debt amounts which is generally the compulsory work-study component that virtually all schools require their students on financial aid to contribute. </p>
<p>The numbers listed have nothing to do with the PARENT’s debt in financing the education which can be an order of magnitude larger.</p>
<p>So when Princeton states the average student has $5,000 in debt on graduation, the average parent may very well have borrowed $100,000 to finance that education. The debt is just not recorded in the student’s name who cannot legally qualify for such borrowings.</p>