By Jeff Murphy,
September 8, 2020
WARRENSBURG, MO – Striving to make education affordable and accessible, the University
of Central Missouri has been recognized by the student finance bureau for having one of the lowest national debt numbers for 2019 graduates. which ranked colleges and universities from lowest (best) to highest (worst) based
on their average debt per borrower data for the Class of 2019, LendEDU ranked UCM
199th nationally as a top overall school for lowest debt, and one of only three public
universities in Missouri recognized in the top 200 nationally.
LendEDU noted that students at UCM on the average borrow only $27,385 for their college
education, compared to the national average of $29,076. The average borrower also
took out less that the state average of $29,613. Additionally, only 10 percent of
UCM students graduated with private student loan debt.
To conduct the report, LendEDU used data from 475 colleges and universities. This
data was provided by Peterson’s Financial Aid Database. At the state level, student
loan data was calculated by weighting the average student loan debt of each institution
by the number of student loan borrowers at that same institution. The proportion of
student loan borrowers was then calculated by the proportion of each student loan
borrower per institution weighted by the bachelor’s degree recipients at the same
school. This same weighting system was used to calculate the data at a national level.
Despite national student loan debt reaching a severe $1.67 trillion, UCM continues
to provide students with financial support and financial solutions as a college-level
institution; for example, nearly $7 million in merit-based scholarships are awarded
to students, according to LendEDU. Various other forms of aid and financial incentives
are also provided to students by the university. This includes $21 million awarded
in institutional aid in 2018-2019 and many private-funded scholarship opportunities
made possible through the UCM Alumni Foundation.
Even in the troubling wake of world events, UCM remains one of the most financially
committed universities for students in the state of Missouri and students nationwide,
according to LendEDU. Many students considering their financial situations for college
can rely on the university to continuously remain committed to providing an accessible,
high-quality university experience for UCM students.
About LendEDU
LendEDU is a financial information site and research group dedicated to providing
tools and data for consumers seeking financial guidance. Collegiately, LendEDU has
numerous resources available to students such as studies, editorials and even free
guides.