The American Association of University Women (AAUW) reports that one year after graduating from college women are paid, on average, 82 percent of what their male counterparts are paid. This pay gap for recent college graduates make its more difficult for women to pay off their student loan debt than is the case for male college graduates. According to a new analysis by the AAUW, women who graduated from college in the 2007-08 academic year were able to pay off 33 percent of their student loan debt by 2012. Men who graduated from college in the 2007-08 academic year were able to pay off 44 percent of their student loan debt by 2012.
According to the AAUW, the student debt load of 53 percent of women college graduates is higher than they can reasonably afford, compared to 39 percent for male college graduates. Thus, young women who recently graduated from college are less able to save for their retirement, buy a car, purchase a home, or make investments. This student loan repayment burden can therefore impact the gender gap in economic well-being far into the future.
This inability to pay off student loan debt due to lower average pay for recent college graduates is particularly severe for African American and Hispanic women. Again for women who graduated from college in the 2007-08 academic year, Hispanic women were able to pay off only 3 percent of their student loan debt by 2012. Black women college graduates were able to pay off only 9 percent of their student loan debt. In contrast White women, who were recent college graduates had paid off 37 percent of their student loan debt by 2012. Asian American women paid off 61 percent of their student loans.