American university students are beginning the new year with a mountain of debt. There is now $850bn owed in outstanding tuition costs and paying back the money is an ongoing challenge.<br /><br />Two in every three American students graduate with loans outstanding, and the current debt is 11 times the total it was just two decades ago.<br /><br />The average yearly cost of a bachelor's degree in the US is between $5 000 and $43 000, compared to just over $5 000 in Canada and $1 300 in much of the European Union.<br /><br />Experts say a college degree is an important investment, but in a difficult job market it is an investment that could take a lifetime to pay off.<br /><br />Al Jazeera's Tom Ackerman reports.
