Americans have taken on $1.6 trillion of student debt, and 43.5 million borrowers carry federal student debt with the average balance surpassing $35,000.
It’s no wonder that more young Americans are skipping college. Undergraduate college enrollment has fallen by 8% from 2019 to 2022, according to data from the National Student Clearinghouse. It’s also the steepest decline on record, the Associated Press reported. People are understandably jaded by student debt.