“Without them I couldn't pay for my education, so here I am": Latinx college graduates’ experiences with and perceptions of their student loan debt

Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to examine the experiences of Latinx students with their student loan debt. Guided by McKinney et al.’s (2015) Student Borrower Behavior and Attitudes model, we framed our study around the following themes: sources of information, rationale for borrowing, and the burden of debt. Findings underscore the importance of financial literacy and provide insight as to how institutions can better support Latinx students in making informed decisions about borrowing loans to pay for and finish college.