Loan debt awaits many Louisiana undergraduates after they get their hands on their diplomas. According to the Christian Science Monitor, two-thirds of graduates nationwide will have loan debt after they procure their bachelor’s degree.

Considering the state of the economy, these new graduates may also face the potential reality of unemployment for some time. Even those who find jobs might not make a high enough salary to pay off their student debt.

According to a piece by Elizabeth Crisp in The Advocate, the Louisiana student loan debt is currently averaged at $22,789. Combined with steadily increasing tuition fees, many students are struggling to get a higher education and fear having to haul their loan debt about like a ball and chain for the rest of their lives.

“I want the American dream too… the house, the car, everything, but at this time I can’t afford it,” said LSU graduate Jessica Potts in an interview with The Advocate.

Compared to the rest of the nation, Louisiana’s debt figures are lower than most. On the Christian Science Monitor website, Louisiana was ranked at number 10 on their list of the states with the lowest amount of student loan debt. Unfortunately, this boon is evened out with the fact that the state’s median household income ranks among the lowest of the United States, according to the article in The Advocate.

Student loan debts began rising around the turn of the century. According to an article in the Christian Science Monitor, between 1999 and 2009, tuition costs for public universities were increased by an average of 73 percent. Another major contributing factor to the rising tuition costs are state budget cuts. This has made it more difficult for students to pay for higher education, which is one of the causes forcing students to borrow money.

The government and many universities have been trying to find a solution. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard are attempting to utilize open source software to offer free online courses. According to the iGrad website, President Obama is trying to prevent the interest rate on student loans from doubling by tethering student loans to Treasury bonds.

Many have and are still proposing suggestions for a solution, but none has yet to prove definitive.