Abstract
Data from the 2008:2012 Baccalaureate and Beyond panel dataset, collected by the US Department of Education, were used to analyze the role of student loan debt in separate predictive models for marriage and fertility decisions in a representative sample of four-year college graduates from institutions across the country. Subjective analysis of marriage and fertility decisions indicated that students identified debt as a significant factor in delaying progression to these major life events. In the empirical analyses of marriage and child birth, instrumenting student loans using in-state tuition rates, student loans were a significant predictor of actual marriage decisions but not a significant predictor for the birth of a first child in the first four years after graduation. Further, for four-year college graduates, a $1,000 increase in cumulative undergraduate student loan balance was associated with a 1.3% decreased likelihood of marriage in the first four years after college.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
