71% of undergraduate students received some type of financial aid

This report presents findings from the 2011-12 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, a nationally representative study of undergraduate and graduate students attending postsecondary institutions in the United States. NPSAS provides the most-up-to-date and comprehensive look at postsecondary student characteristics and student financial aid for the 2011-12 academic year.

The survey includes about 95,000 undergraduate and 16,000 graduate students attending 1,500 postsecondary institutions in the 50 states and the District of Columbia (prior cycles of NPSAS also included institutions from Puerto Rico). The report describes the percentages of students receiving various types of financial aid and average amounts received, by type of institution attended, attendance pattern, dependency status, and income level.

Seventy-one percent of all undergraduate students received some type of financial aid (including student loans) in the 2011-12 academic year. For those who received any aid, the total average amount was $10,800.

Other findings from the 2011-12 academic year include:

• Fifty-nine percent of undergraduate students received grants averaging $6,200 and 42 percent took out an average of $7,100 in student loans.

• Six percent of undergraduates received aid through work-study jobs averaging $2,300 in wages; 4 percent received an average of $7,500 in veterans’ benefits; and 5 percent had parents who took out an average of $12,100 in federal Direct PLUS Loans.

• Among graduate students, 70 percent received some type of financial aid averaging $22,300, including student loans.

• Twelve percent of graduate students received an average of $14,700 in assistantships and 45 percent took out an average of $21,400 in student loans.