by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Gonzaga University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Gonzaga, 43% of first-year students take on loan debt, for an average of $8,107 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federally funded loan is $5,135, amounting to 93.4% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Looking at all undergraduates at Gonzaga, freshmen included, 36% borrow through federal student loan programs, at an average of $6,154 each per year. It comes to 19.8% larger than the $5,135 typical freshmen borrow.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $12,308 over two years and about $24,616 by the fourth year. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 36% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,154 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,836 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $11,298,330 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Gonzaga carry a median federal debt of $20,500 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $24,454 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,750 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Gonzaga.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $12,000 |
| 75th percentile | $29,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Gonzaga.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Gonzaga.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 628 | $32,632 |
| Completed (graduates) | 489 | $37,652 |
| Did not complete | 139 | $20,689 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $447.72/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Gonzaga.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 568 | $34,941 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 60 | $17,966 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Gonzaga.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Gonzaga appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 1.7% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1707 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $23,650 |
| Middle income | $20,000 |
| High income | $20,418 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $21,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,744 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $20,500 |
| Independent students | $23,000 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Gonzaga.
Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
With an unsubsidized loan, interest starts adding up the day the loan is disbursed, including during school. Subsidized loans, by contrast, do not accrue interest while you are enrolled at least half-time, which makes them the less expensive option when you qualify.
Important to Remember
Unlike most other debt, federal student loans generally survive bankruptcy — and unpaid balances can lead to wage garnishment — so borrow only what you truly need.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.