Area college undergraduates are graduating with an average of more than $25,000 of federal student loan debt, a number that has been creeping up in recent years. And with incoming freshmen able to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid starting Jan. 1, a new batch of students will soon learn how much debt they will need to take on. According to the schools' financial aid directors, recently graduated seniors from Black Hills State University graduated with an average of $27,000 of federal student loan debt, while South Dakota School of Mines & Technology students averaged $26,000.
