by our College Data Analytics TeamThe majority of students will never be charged the full sticker price of a school. Rather, they are offered a financial aid plan that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The total price of attendance at Appalachian State University can feel overpowering, but remember that the majority of students receive some sort of financial assistance.
Just what financial assistance solutions will Appalachian State deliver, and just what are you going to be eligible for? Read on for answers. Scroll down to see how much school funding could be available to you.
Your financial aid package, which may contain grants and scholarships, will be determined on your financial need. Continue reading to find information to help you understand just how much assistance you can expect to receive from Appalachian State University.
Financial assistance, available as scholarships, loans, and work-study, is a way schools lower the price of attendance so many students can enroll. Some kinds of aid are clearly preferable to others, and outcomes differ across students.
Among first-time, full-time freshmen at Appalachian State University, 69% of the incoming full-time class was awarded financial aid approximately 2910 freshmen).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 46% | $8,014 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 44% | $3,421 |
| Federal Pell grants | 26% | $5,729 |
| State/local grants | 23% | $2,987 |
| Federal student loans | 41% | $5,172 |
Because grants and scholarships do not have to be repaid, they are the most sought-after type of financial aid. Across the undergraduate body at Appalachian State, approximately 44% of undergraduates were awarded grant or scholarship aid averaging $8,899 (across approximately 8573 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 44% | $8,899 |
| Federal Pell grants | 26% | $5,643 |
| Federal student loans | 37% | $6,197 |
Among title-IV aid recipients living on campus, grant and scholarship aid averaged $6,333.
Need-based aid means lower-income families typically pay far less than the sticker price suggests.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $9,657 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $13,743 |
| Over $75,000 | $21,572 |
Each figure is the net price after grants and scholarships, not the published sticker price.
Net price is the average annual cost after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the published cost of attendance — the figure closest to what a typical aid-receiving student actually pays.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $16,836 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $16,487 |
To project your own net price, use Appalachian State’s online cost calculator: appstate.edu/npc/.
The middle student in the debt distribution at Appalachian State owes $15,750 of cumulative federal debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $15,750 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $20,231 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $214.48/mo |
The 10-year payment estimate assumes a standard federal repayment plan and the median graduate debt amount.
The median alone does not show how widely outcomes vary across the student body. The figures below chart the debt distribution at Appalachian State.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $7,217 |
| 75th percentile | $25,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $30,123 |
How much a student borrows depends heavily on family income, first-gen status, and dependency.
Debt by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $14,786 |
| Middle income | $15,750 |
| High income | $16,583 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,536 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,091 |
Dependent vs Independent Students
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $15,750 |
| Independent students | $16,012 |
Federal data publishes pre-calculated indicators that summarize debt outcomes. Appalachian State.
Most undergraduate borrowing runs through the federal Stafford loan program. The totals below capture Stafford lending at Appalachian State:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 45128 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $802,297,541 |
The GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the main federal aid routes for veterans and service members.
Post-9/11 GI Bill recipients
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 458 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $3,208,557 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $7,006 |
DoD Tuition Assistance activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 30 |
| Total DoD amount | $61,748 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $2,058 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.