College students who graduated in the United States in 2009 left school with an average of $24,000 in student debt, up 6 percent from 2008, according to a report out today from the Project on Student Debt.

The report followed students from four-year public and not-for-profit colleges and universities.

State averages vary from approximately $13,000 to $30,000, and per-campus averages from $3,000 and $61,500, the report said.

The highest debt was recorded by students graduating in the District of Columbia, where the average debt was $30,033. The lowest was in Utah, at $12,860.

Graduating students in Washington carried an average debt of $19,780, placing the state 40th nationally. Fifty-eight percent of graduating state seniors in the study left school with debt, the report said.

Among state institutions, here’s a look at average debt of 2009 graduates and the proportion of the school’s graduates with debt:

• University of Washington Seattle: $16,800, 50 percent;
• University of Washington Tacoma: $17,900, 58 percent;
• Pacific Lutheran University: $24,639, 72 percent;
• University of Puget Sound: $29,514, 63 percent;
• The Evergreen State College: $14,310; 51 percent;
• St. Martin’s University: $27,807, 79 percent;
• Gonzaga University: $24,883, 70 percent

The report was compiled by the Institute for College Access and Success, an independent, non-profit organization based in Oakland, Calif. It is supported, according to its website, by organizations including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Ford Foundation.