North Carolina's students are graduating with more debt than ever before.
The average student graduating from a public, or private-non-profit school will graduate with $23,893 dollars in debt. In 2008, the average student had just $18,000 in debt.
We wondered...just what could you buy with $24,000?
How about a Toyota Camry L with keyless entry?
Or perhaps you prefer more than 1,700 bottles of wine from GlenMarie Vineyards in Burlington, NC.
15 - 20 Llamas from Four Ladies and Me Llama Farm in East Bend, NC?
How about season tickets (in a 50 yard line box) to the Carolina Panthers... for 5 years.
Or maybe you'd choose an entire extra year of education at N.C. State University.
MORE PEOPLE GRADUATING WITH DEBT
And not only is there more debt, there are more people graduating with that debt - up from 55% to 59%.
Lauren Asher, President of The Institute for College Access and Success, chalks some of that gain up to depleting public assistance.
"While the Pell Grant has seen recent increases," said Asher, "...it covers the lowest share of the average cost of going to a public 4 year college, in the history of the program: less than 1/3rd. So even if you receive a Pell Grant in the full amount when your income is very low, that's only covering 1/3rd of what it costs to be at a public four year college."
The good news is that North Carolina is still among the lowest states when it comes to student debt. The national average is about $29,000.
"But nearly 24,000 dollars is still a substantial amount of debt", said Asher. "And more than people were owing graduating with four years ago."
