For-Profit Colleges Disproportionately Responsible for Increase in Debt and Defaults

[sanantone]

Comparing the 2000 and 2014 lists of colleges where students owe the most total debt, one can see an obvious difference. The 2014 list includes many more for-profit colleges. 

https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Chart_LooneyYannelis_StudentLoanDefaults.png

For-profit colleges and private and public 2-year colleges account for the increase in student loan defaults, but the average amount defaulted on at community colleges is around $5,000. 

https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2016/05/10/the-student-debt-crisis-at-state-community-colleges

https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Chart2_LooneyYannelis_StudentLoanDefaults.png

University of Phoenix, Devry, Kaplan, Strayer, Ashford, and Grand Canyon University had disturbingly high 5-year student loan default rates in 2014. They were also among the colleges responsible for the most accumulated debt. 

https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/LooneyTextFall15BPEA.pdf

The majority of students who default between 3 to 5 years attended for-profit colleges. 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereknewton/2018/12/09/20000-more-reasons-to-never-go-to-a-for-profit-school/#7cb180b630e5

For-profit colleges have worse labor market outcomes. Additionally, those who earn associate's degrees at non-profit and public colleges see large, statistically significant benefits but for-profit students do not. 

https://www.nber.org/papers/w25042.pdf
https://www.nber.org/papers/w18201

For-profit colleges have been disastrous for African American students. The student bodies at for-profit colleges are disproportionately African American, and AA students have more debt than AA students at non-profit colleges. 

https://www.responsiblelending.org/student-loans/research-policy/2014-CRL-Policy-Brief-For-Profit-Colleges-and-Students-of-Color-Summary-April.pdf

This article compares the 12-year (and 12-year projected) default rates among students who started school in 1996 vs. 2004. The default rates for for-profit colleges was 46.5% among those starting school in 2004. The next highest sector, private non-profits, had a default rate of 13.2%. AA students had the highest student loan default rates at 37.5%. 

In the 2015-2016 school year, half of black doctoral students were attending for-profit colleges. Overall, for-profit colleges only had 17% of doctoral students. 80% borrowed an average of $109,000 for their for-profit doctoral degrees. 

https://hechingerreport.org/opinion-black-students-unprecedented-and-unequal-college-debt-is-cause-for-alarm/

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This article nicely summarizes the stats with graphics.

https://capseecenter.org/research/by-the...fographic/

Community colleges often get compared to for-profit colleges because of the student loan defaults. There are multiple problems with this comparison. The amount CC students are defaulting on is far lower, fewer CC students borrow in the first place because CCs are cheap, and the 12-year default rates of CCs and for-profit colleges aren't even close.

[ChilliDawg]

I work with a young man who earned his Bachelor and Master through a popular "for-profit". He told me that he has to repay nearly $90,000. I was blown away, and almost didn't believe it. He acknowledges that it was a grand mistake on his behalf, and says that many times he doesn't even want to list it on his resume'.