However, Harvard’s own figures show that the recent changes in the University’s financial aid system have helped to reverse this trend of increased borrowing for students in Harvard College.

The average member of Harvard’s Class of 2001 graduated with a debt of $13,360, a drop of about 10 percent from the year before. The average debt for a student in the Class of 2000 was $15,000, according to Financial Aid Office Janet Irons.

“We’re projecting that those numbers will continue to drop as students borrow less in the coming years,” Irons said.

In March, Harvard increased financial aid grants by $2,000, reducing the amount students on aid contribute from loans or a job from $5,150 per year to $3,150.

The Real Cost

However, despite the high cost of tuition, another study out last week by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) showed that tuition does not come close to covering the actual cost of a college education.

NACUBO has been studying the tuition as part of its “Cost of College Project,” which hopes to define a formula for figuring out the true cost of a college education to the institution and includes everything from research and faculty salaries to electricity and heating costs.