WASHINGTON

African Americans view a college education as more important then ever, but also worry that it is becoming less and less affordable while they see students graduating with more debt, says a new survey.

The findings, released Wednesday by the Project on Student Debt, also says Blacks believe government should be doing more to help, and support reforms to make loan payments more manageable.

“Students and parents understand that loans help open the door to college,” said Robert Shireman, director of the Project on Student Debt. “But they also know that student debt can be an enormous burden, particularly for a recent graduate. Our goal is to promote practical, cost-effective policy changes that will make student loans more affordable for America’s families.”

The national survey also found:

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  Ninety-one percent of African Americans (and 80 percent of all adults surveyed) say that a college education is more important today than it was 10 years ago. But 62 percent of African Americans (and 66 percent of adults) say that affording college is more difficult now.
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  Seventy-seven percent of African Americans (and 59 percent of adults) say that students today have too much student loan debt. Eighty-four percent of African Americans (and 66 percent of adults) say it is hard to repay student loans. 
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  More than half of African Americans (56 percent) worry somewhat or very often about not being able to afford education costs for their children.
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  Eighty-seven percent of African Americans (and 64 percent of all adults) say the federal government is doing too little to make higher education more available and affordable.

The Project on Student Debt also conducted a preliminary analysis of the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form by asking students who filled it out if they were interested in loans. These students were about to enroll in two-year or four-year colleges. Only 15 percent of White applicants who went on to enroll said no; 28 percent of African Americans said no; and 27 percent of Latinos said no.