Today, after Penn State begins selling bonds to finance various projects, the university's debt will reach more than $900 million, according to a recent report from a financial company.

Moody's Investors Service recently released a report stating that the university has total outstanding rated debt of $921 million.

Lisa Powers, a Penn State spokeswoman, said the debt load is not unusually high compared to other Big Ten universities or other colleges throughout the country.

"We only incur a higher level of debt when it's a project that needs to be financed pretty quickly and is mostly of tremendous value to the university," she said.

Through Lehman Brothers, an investment bank serving as the university's underwriter, Penn State will begin selling bonds today with a 20-year payback period, a process that essentially means the university is borrowing $75.1 million for capital projects, including the construction of the Penn State Dickinson School of Law and the Penn State Cancer Institute, Powers said.

Some of the money required to take out loans is financed through tuition-supported borrowing, Powers added.

Additionally, the university is selling $7.9 million in bonds, but this money will end up saving the university $350,000 in interest payments because Penn State is refinancing some of its loans, Powers said.

Moody's report indicates that the university has a $2 billion cushion for debt through expendable resources.

As part of the bond selling process, Penn State also received a credit rating and analysis of its financial situation from Moody's, which gave the university a rating of "Aa2," the third highest ranking on 10-point scale.

"Only a very small percentage of other universities are rated higher than Penn State," Powers said. "This positive rating would indicate us possibly receiving a higher rating in the future."

Other state-related schools' credit ratings were included in the report. The University of Pittsburgh received an "Aa2" rating; Temple University received an "A1" rating, the fifth highest ranking; and Lincoln University received an "A3" ranking, the seventh highest ranking, or seven out of ten on the ten point scale.

Penn State's financial outlook has been revised from "stable" to "positive" for its most recent bonds, because of a financial resource growth of 29 percent over the past two years to $2.9 billion, according to the report.

The report also indicated the strengths and challenges of Penn State's financial operation.

"Penn State shows a comparatively high reliance on student charges, accounting for 39 percent of total operating revenues in [fiscal year] 2007, well above many peer public universities," the report stated. "With significant tuition increases implemented in recent years, Penn State is significantly above the net tuition per student levels of many Big Ten and other peer public universities."

Among strengths, Moody's report pointed to high retention rates, good economic development and strong student demand for Penn State.