The Influence of Stafford Load Debtload on Persistence Among Historically Underserved Populations at a Hispanic Serving Institution

This study presents a mixed methods explanatory analysis of the influence of Stafford loan debtload on persistence among underserved populations attending a Hispanic Serving Institution in the Southwest of the United States. Using data from cohort 2010, fall to fall persistence was examined to assess if debtload was related to persistence for all full-time, first-time undergraduate students based on demographic characteristics. Additionally, in-depth interviews were conducted on undergraduate students during fall 2017 to gain a better understanding of their experiences with debtload and if it played into their persistence decisions. Results of the study revealed statistically significant relationships between debtload and persistence for all first-time, full-time undergraduate students, White non-Hispanic students, Hispanic students, male students, female students, students from low and medium annual household incomes, as well as for first-generation and continuing generation students. Further, low debt was a predictor of non-persistence for each of these groups of students. The findings from the qualitative study showed how debtload influenced students' persistence decisions. Overall, findings suggest that the threshold of debt is extremely low for these particular students attending a Hispanic Serving Institution.