by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Arkansas State University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
For incoming students at A-State, 46% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, averaging $6,000 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,270, representing 95.8% 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.
For undergraduates overall at A-State, 46% take out federal student loans, averaging $7,395 per year. That is 40.3% more than the first-year federal average of $5,270.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $14,790 in two years and roughly $29,580 across a four-year program. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 46% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,395 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,712 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $27,449,602 |
The median student at A-State borrows $15,000 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $20,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for A-State.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $25,250 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $38,767 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at A-State.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for A-State.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1471 | $11,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 751 | $11,000 |
| Did not complete | 720 | $10,924 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $130.8/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at A-State.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1457 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 14 | — |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1198 | $10,553 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 273 | $12,682 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at A-State.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. Two-year cohort default-rate data for A-State appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 11.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 4676 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
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 | $16,000 |
| Middle income | $14,421 |
| High income | $14,750 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,250 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,266 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,323 |
| Independent students | $17,000 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at A-State.
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
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.