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Path to Debt-Free UC UC Office of the President

This submission represents work taking place system-wide that is complementary to the state’s Middle Class Scholarship to further support affordability and prevent students from taking on debt. UC financial aid typically asks students to contribute to covering the cost of their own education – including indirect costs like rent, food, books, etc. – through a combination of part-time work and student loan. Under the Path to Debt-Free program, financial aid packages are augmented so that students, if they so choose, could finance their college education with part-time work alone. It already demonstrates results: UC is tracking the number of individuals with a debt-free financial aid package (22,000 over two years) and the annual borrowing rates. In 2022-23, 28% of California undergraduates borrowed compared to the 37% who borrowed in 2019-20, which is the last year unaffected by the pandemic.