by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Advanced Welding Institute, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
Looking at the entering class at AWI, 55% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, at roughly $5,988 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federally funded loan is $5,016, amounting to 91.2% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
For undergraduates overall at AWI, 52% rely on federal student loans toward their education, for a typical $5,043 per year. This is 0.5% above the $5,016 borrowed by freshmen.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $10,086 across two years and $20,172 over four years. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 52% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,043 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 70 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $352,990 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at AWI carry a median federal debt of $5,077 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,077 |
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for AWI.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 25th percentile | $5,077 |
| 75th percentile | $5,481 |
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at AWI.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 20 | $20,125 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. AWI.
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 AWI is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 15.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 25 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Middle income | $5,077 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,077 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,077 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,077 |
| Independent students | $8,769 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at AWI.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Unsubsidized federal student loans accrue interest every month — even while you are still enrolled. Unless you pay that interest as it builds, the balance you owe at graduation can be noticeably higher than the amount you originally borrowed.
Worth Knowing
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.