Highlights

• The nominal value of loan balances was $14,837 million as at 30 June 2015.
• In the 2014 academic year, 186,477 students borrowed $1,601 million from the loan scheme (this represented 72.4 percent of eligible students, down from 73.8 percent in 2013).
• As at 30 June 2015, 728,348 people had a student loan with Inland Revenue.
• The strong labour market since 2010 has meant a reduction in part-time study and fewer student numbers overall.
• An increasing proportion of borrowers are under 27 years old – in 2006, it was 65.2 percent, while in 2014, it increased to 72.5 percent.
• There has been a shift to higher level qualifications – in 2006, 56 percent of student loan borrowers were enrolled at bachelors level or higher while in 2014, this was 68 percent.
• In the 2014 academic year, 72.4 percent of eligible students took out a loan, down from 73.8 percent in 2013.
• In the 2014/15 financial year, overall repayments increased by 8 percent and repayments from overseas-based borrowers increased by 17 percent.
• The overseas-based borrower compliance initiative is gaining momentum and led to the collection of $202 million by 30 June 2015 that may not have otherwise been received.
• The number of borrowers in default has declined slightly on 2013/14, but the amount in default has increased.
• In the 2014/15 financial year, borrowers took up $1,529 million in loans, of which $602 million was treated as an expense through a fair value write down; on average, the fair value write down was 39.35 cents for each dollar lent.
• The median borrowing increased – from $7,441 in 2013 to $7,708 in 2014. The median loan balance also increased – from $13,882 in 2013 to $14,421 in 2014. Both increases are driven by increases in fee borrowing: fees are increasing and students are more likely to take more expensive courses.