Federal Loans for Graduate Students on Track to Outpace Those for Undergraduates

The U.S. Department of Education could soon disburse more for graduate student loans than it does for undergraduate loans, according to a recent report from the agency’s chief economist office. That’s because undergraduate loan disbursements have plummeted, falling from almost $80 billion in 2010 to $45 billion a decade later. Those figures are adjusted for inflation to 2020 dollars. Meanwhile, graduate loan disbursements surged starting around 2000 before leveling off at around $40 billion from 2010 to 2020. Graduate loans will account for the majority of disbursements in the next few years if these trends persist, according to the report.