{"id":104080,"date":"2019-10-09T10:02:56","date_gmt":"2019-10-09T08:02:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=104080"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:24:30","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:24:30","slug":"student-debt-rises-to-19-billion-euros","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/10\/09\/student-debt-rises-to-19-billion-euros\/","title":{"rendered":"Student debt rises to 19 billion euros"},"content":{"rendered":"

Total student debt in the Netherlands rose by 1.9 billion euros last year to reach a total of 19.3 billion, according to Statistics Netherlands.<\/p>\n

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The abolition of the basic student grant in September 2015 has forced students to borrow more. They are indeed borrowing<\/a>, and the younger they are, the faster their debt appears to be growing.<\/p>\n

The average student debt has increased from \u20ac12,400 in 2015 to \u20ac13,700 in 2019. In that period, the number of individuals with student debt has also increased, rising by 388,000 to reach 1.4 million.<\/p>\n

Not a positive message<\/h2>

Student organisations are watching this trend with dismay. \u201cThe system is telling a whole generation that it is normal to borrow large sums of money,\u201d says Kees Gillesse of the Dutch National Students Association (ISO). \u201cThat is not a positive message.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alex Tess Rutten of the Dutch National Union of Students (LSVb) agrees: \u201cSubstantial student debt is a cause of stress and has a serious impact on the rest of your life. Saddling young people with so much debt is nothing short of irresponsible.\u201d<\/p>\n