video transcript

American college students face a rising burden of debt and fewer jobs to pay it off. The average student debt rose to more than 26000. Dollars and 2011. A 5% increase over the previous year. The problem has reached such urgent levels of the US military is even sounding the alarm. It says mounting college debt owed by troops is among the top causes of anxiety. Sometimes topping war itself. Senior economist Cary leahey at decision economics has the rising cost of college and debt levels are making some Americans. Opt out. That impact this happening is is that people are you know taking out fewer loans and they're getting less education. It's one thing to run a debt to pay for a college education but with unemployment for college grads at eight point 8%. Many Americans find the costs hard to justify. It is very hard to tell someone to take on a 100000 dollars of student debt give up four years that potential. Income earning. If you're not gonna end up in a position it really requires that kind of training. The consumer finance protection bureau says about 37 million Americans. A a total exceeding one trillion dollars and student loan debt. Compounding the problem many students don't understand financial matters and the loans they signed. So they don't even know what they show. One student with an 181000 dollar loan was surprised to learn her payments would be nearly 200 dollars a month. With low paying jobs or no jobs at all. Many college grads moved back in with mom and dad and often put off buying big ticket items like cars. Or even homes. -- economists -- actually got in says this -- shifted homeownership and the US. Young adults. Preferring to leave Long Island it is the sale of these adults between the ages of 25 and -- war. It's still very high by historical norms. People just it's key to move out of golden and by us. And there may be even more damaging affects to the US economy. You know young adults aren't the driving force that -- frightening innovation and this is this -- of the US -- It's in the innovation and unfortunately we don't see much progress. In that -- There are proposals to increase federal aid to help with rising tuition costs but nothing will come immediately and that's a problem for American students. The National Center for Education Statistics. The average of forty year cost for a public university has climbed to 54000. Dollars. At private universities is 94000. Dollars Carmen Roberts Reuters.