Financing higher education involves a critical set of decisions that have a lasting impact on individual lives, yet the process can be complex and confusing. Student Debt Smarter provides customized, relevant and accurate information aimed at helping prospective college students make more informed decisions about their future.
Distributed by National Association for College Admission Counseling and funded by Peter G. Peterson Foundation, the Student Debt Smarter program was created by a range of trusted experts to help to increase transparency and empower the next generation to reach their education, career and financial goals.
A Letter from Angel B. Pérez,
CEO, National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC)
Dr. Angel B. Pérez is the CEO of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). In this role, he represents over 27,000 admission and counseling professionals worldwide committed to postsecondary access and success. Prior to joining NACAC in 2020, Dr. Pérez served in higher education leadership positions, most recently, as Vice President for Enrollment and Student Success at Trinity College in Connecticut. Dr. Pérez’s leadership has been featured in many outlets including the American Society for Association Executives, AwareNow, and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Welcome to the Student Debt Smarter Program!
Exploring higher education opportunities is an exciting time, but it’s essential to make informed decisions about how to finance college. The path to achieving academic dreams should be empowering, not overwhelming, and we are here to offer support every step of the way.
At NACAC, we have embraced change, growth, and modernity, all while remaining dedicated to our mission of making postsecondary education accessible to all. It is with this spirit that we introduce Student Debt Smarter’s Affordability Calculator a vital tool designed to help students and their support system navigate the complexities of paying for college and understanding student debt.
The Student Debt Affordability Calculator is more than just a tool: It is a guide to making smart, informed decisions about borrowing money for college. We understand that taking on debt can be a daunting prospect, but with the right resources and information, students can turn it into a steppingstone toward a brighter future.
This calculator allows students and their support system to input various factors such as choice of school, major, graduation timeline, and post-graduation plans to see how these factors may affect their financial outlook. By doing so, students and their families can ensure that their student loans are manageable and that their education investment leads to greater financial security.
For many, borrowing to pay for college is their first significant financial decision. It’s crucial to approach this decision with a clear understanding of how it may impact the future. The Student Debt Affordability Calculator provides the tool necessary to assess the affordability of loan options and helps to plan for postsecondary education in a way that maximizes future earnings while minimizing financial stress.
At NACAC, we believe that every student deserves access to an education that is not only fulfilling but also financially sustainable. We are committed to providing transparent, easy-to-understand resources that empower students and their families to make the best choices for their academic and financial future. By leveraging the Student Debt Affordability Calculator, students and their support system can make informed decisions that align with their goals and aspirations.
Thank you for trusting NACAC as your partner in this important journey. Together, we can ensure that the transformative power of higher education remains within reach for all students. Here’s to a future filled with opportunities and success.
Onward!
Angel B. Pérez, Ph.D.
CEO, National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC)
About the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC)
Founded in 1937, The National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) is a non-profit membership association representing more than 27,000 professionals who work with students as they make the transition to postsecondary education. As an organization comprised of school counselors working in K-12 schools and college admission officers working at non-profit institutions of postsecondary education, NACAC is uniquely positioned to provide expertise, leadership, and implementation resources to effect change with students, with school leaders, and with policymakers. NACAC’s vision is to make the transformative power of postsecondary education accessible to all.
In September 2023, CEO Angel B. Pérez announced at NACAC’s annual conference the intention to create a center for reimagining college access. The formation of the center actualizes NACAC’s aim to institutionalize a permanent commitment to innovation, education, and evaluation of admission practices within the profession.
As part of this center, NACAC will provide innovative, professionally relevant resources to help transform the college transition into a process that is more equitable, fair, and easily navigable. Incorporating the Student Debt Smarter program and its Affordability Calculator tool constitutes a critical step toward providing more effective counseling for students hoping to transition to college. Data from the U.S. Department of Education’s High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS) demonstrated that students who worked with a school counselor 1:1 in the college search were seven times more likely to complete the FAFSA, three times more likely to enroll in some form of postsecondary education, and twice as likely to enroll in a four-year college. However, NACAC research has consistently revealed that advising students about whether and how much to borrow for college has remained a top challenge for school counselors and college advisors. This resource addresses that challenge.
The National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) plays a pivotal role in promoting and facilitating education and financial awareness through Student Debt Smarter.
NACAC collaborates with allied organizations and advocacy groups, creating a supportive network to expand the Student Debt Smarter program’s usage. Through these initiatives, NACAC empowers stakeholders with the knowledge and tools necessary to make informed financial decisions about higher education.
About the Peter G. Peterson Foundation (PGPF)
The Peter G. Peterson Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization which promotes fiscal responsibility to secure a stronger economic future for the next generation. PGPF works to raise awareness about America’s growing national debt, but we also recognize that at the individual level, student debt is one of the most significant challenges facing the next generation. We are proud to provide Student Debt Smarter as a simple and easy-to-understand resource aimed at helping prospective college students to make informed, data-backed decisions about their student loans.
Sheila Bair, Student Debt Smarter Senior Advisor
Sheila Bair has had a long and distinguished career in government, academia, and finance, and was twice named by Forbes Magazine as the second most powerful woman in the world. Bair was Chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) from 2006 to 2011, when she steered the agency through the Great Recession; is a frequent commentator on financial regulation and the student debt crisis; and is the author of the NY Times Best Seller, Bull by the Horns, her memoir of the financial crisis, as well as the Money Tales picture book series for children.
If you are reading this, you are probably starting to think about your college education and confronting hard choices over where to go to school and how to pay for it. These days, it is common for students to borrow to pay for some or all their higher education. Debt is a way to get something now and pay for it later. As such, it imposes a financial burden on a borrower’s future. But that’s OK if borrowers are smart about their borrowing. Helping college-bound young people make that determination is what Student Debt Smarter is all about.
Smart debt provides some future economic benefit – it will make you more, not less, financially secure later on. Borrowing to pay for college can be smart debt as college degrees frequently (but not always) lead to improved earnings once borrowers graduate and enter the workforce. But it’s important for students to know whether they will be able to repay their student loans without financial hardship once they start working and whether the degrees they receive will enhance their incomes.
For most young people, borrowing to pay for college will be their first significant interaction with debt. I want to make it a successful one for them. It is not easy for young people to get information about how affordable their student debt will be once they graduate. They will find plenty of resources on the internet about how much they can borrow, but not how much they should borrow. The affordability of student borrowers’ loans is heavily influenced by their earlier choices of school, major, how long they take to graduate, and where they want to live after they do so. The Affordability Calculator lets prospective students easily input any number of variations based on these choices before committing to a particular school or major and level of borrowing. This information is designed to help inform your decisions before you commit to a particular college and financial loan package, including understanding the total amount of college debt that will be affordable to you.
As a former financial regulator and college President, I have seen too often how students lack clear, simple, and transparent information to borrow wisely to pay for college. You deserve an education that is meaningful and interesting to you, but also one that will help prepare you for your post-college career and make you more, not less financially secure. I am proud to be a Senior Advisor to the Student Debt Smarter Program to help you make smart decisions in using debt to finance your education and secure the bright future to which you aspire. I hope you find Student Debt Smarter a helpful guiding light in that journey.
