Class of 2018 graduates from four-year colleges in California left school with an average debt load of $22,585, less than the average debt taken on by students in 47 other states, according to a report published Thursday by the Institute for College Access and Success. About half of students in California graduated with no debt at all, and only students in Utah and New Mexico graduated with less debt on average than California students. The findings reflect previous years’ versions of the same report, which have also showed that only graduates from Utah and New Mexico had smaller debt loads than California’s graduates. Across the United States, the average student loan debt for Class of 2018 graduates was $29,200, a 2 percent increase from the Class of 2017
