The average female college grad gets a $35,000 starting salary - not much more than the typical borrower's student-debt load, report finds

The American Association of University Women compared women's student-debt burdens to their income.
Black women have more student debt than white women, highlighting the racial wealth gap.
AAUW recommended simplifying repayment options, which the Education Department is pursuing.

Americans hold a $1.7 trillion student-debt burden, but new data indicates that women bear a bigger portion of that burden, which is exacerbated by gender pay gaps.

The American Association of University Women, a nonprofit that advances equity for women, released a new report that found that among those taking out student loans, women borrowed an average of $31,276 while men borrowed an average of $29,720. Women also have more difficulty paying off those loans, given that women who graduate with a bachelor's degree expect to earn $35,338 their first year out of college - 81% of what men expect to earn, the report said, citing the latest available figures.

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