(The Center Square) — New Hampshire ranks last in the nation for higher education funding, according to a new report, which said the lack of financial support for college students could impact the state’s economy.

The report by the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research group, found that New Hampshire spent $4,629 per full-time student in the previous year, the lowest amount in the country. The national average was $11,683, the report said. 

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Between fiscal years 2024 and 2025, state aid for public higher education dropped 3.9% while the average among all U.S. states increased 4.3% during that period, according to the report.

Reductions in funding for New Hampshire’s public higher education institutions can have adverse economic effects across the state, particularly for the workforce,” the report’s authors said. “The Granite State’s workforce is rapidly aging, which may be contributing to long-predicted workforce shortages.” 

According to the report, in fiscal year 2025, the state budgeted $120 for public higher education for every person in New Hampshire. That was the lowest amount of any state, with Arizona being the next-lowest funder of public higher education that year at $166 per capita. Nationwide, state government support for public higher education averaged $380 per capita. 

“To fund public higher education in New Hampshire at the same rate as the national per capita average, New Hampshire would need to increase funding by $260 per capita,” the report stated.

Four of the ten occupations with the largest projected 10-year employment growth in New Hampshire between 2022 and 2032 require at least a four-year degree, the report’s authors noted, including software developers, general and operations managers, financial managers, and nurse practitioners. 

“Given the need for workers in jobs that require college degrees, access to, and the affordability of, public higher education for Granite Staters is vital,” they wrote. 

The report’s authors noted recent progress by New Hampshire to support public higher education, citing data from the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association showing a 14.2% increase in state financial aid between fiscal years 2020 and 2025. But they said the funding increase “trailed” the average national increase of 32.9% during that period.

Meanwhile, high tuition costs and limited state aid for public higher education can also have “long-term impacts” on the financial well-being of Granite State students and families, the report noted.

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In New Hampshire, graduates from colleges and universities are more likely to have student debt than graduates in other states, they noted, and the impact on earning potential can limit individual and family spending that also supports the state’s economy. 

“Individual and family financial stability and wealth-building can be hindered by delayed readiness to buy a house or save for retirement due to high student loan debt, or limited earning capacity when a postsecondary degree is not pursued,” they wrote.