by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Adelphi University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Adelphi, 63% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $5,356 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The average federally funded loan is $5,356, representing 97.4% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
For undergraduates overall at Adelphi, 59% rely on federal student loans toward their education, with a mean of $6,525 in federal loans per year. That is 21.8% larger than the $5,356 borrowed by freshmen.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $13,050 after two years and $26,100 over four years. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 59% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,525 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,005 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $19,606,558 |
The middle borrower at Adelphi owes $20,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,750 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Adelphi.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $10,750 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Adelphi.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Adelphi.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1275 | $36,690 |
| Completed (graduates) | 769 | $48,005 |
| Did not complete | 506 | $24,480 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $570.83/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Adelphi.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1245 | $37,085 |
| No Stafford loan | 30 | $20,850 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1043 | $42,903 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 232 | $20,760 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Adelphi.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Adelphi appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2208 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $21,250 |
| Middle income | $22,027 |
| High income | $19,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $20,628 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,000 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $19,821 |
| Independent students | $25,000 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Adelphi.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.