Student Loans and National Debt

Since 2008, the net outflow of money the federal government borrowed to provide direct student loans has exploded, rising by $89.7 billion dollars, or 17.8% of the $504 billion discrepancy. In terms of the total increase in the national debt from FY2008 to FY2010, the explosion in student loans would account for 2.5% of the entire increase above and beyond the deficits the government ran in those years, both with the public and with itself.