by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Mount Saint Mary’s University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At MSMU specifically, 82% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, with a typical loan of $6,018 per student, private and federal loans combined.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,135, which is 93.4% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Looking at all undergraduates at MSMU, freshmen included, 69% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $6,832 a year. That is 33.0% larger than the $5,135 freshmen take on.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $13,664 after two years and $27,328 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 69% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,832 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,197 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $8,178,405 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at MSMU carry a median federal debt of $22,167 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $22,167 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,949 |
| Students who withdrew | $11,941 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at MSMU.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,902 |
| 25th percentile | $10,500 |
| 75th percentile | $30,033 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $40,018 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at MSMU.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at MSMU.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 709 | $20,313 |
| Completed (graduates) | 504 | $23,250 |
| Did not complete | 205 | $15,500 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $276.47/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at MSMU.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 676 | $20,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 33 | $26,667 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for MSMU.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for MSMU is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 852 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $22,375 |
| Middle income | $23,250 |
| High income | $18,914 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $22,250 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,683 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $22,250 |
| Independent students | $22,085 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for MSMU.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Subsidized loans pause interest while you are in school; unsubsidized loans do not. That difference compounds over four years, so the type of loan you take matters as much as the amount.
Important to Remember
Declaring bankruptcy does not erase federal student loan debt. If you stop paying, the federal government can garnish a portion of your wages until the loans are repaid.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.