by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Arkansas Tech University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At ATU, 40% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $7,526 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
Federal loans alone average $6,575. This meets or exceeds the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Across the full undergraduate body at ATU (freshmen included), 39% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, borrowing on average $6,997 in federal loans per year. This works out to 6.4% higher than the $6,575 borrowed by freshmen.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $13,994 by year two and around $27,988 by the fourth year. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 39% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,997 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 2,323 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $16,253,997 |
The median student at ATU borrows $11,350 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $11,350 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $21,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,543 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 ATU.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $21,600 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,870 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at ATU.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at ATU.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 683 | $9,130 |
| Completed (graduates) | 305 | $10,791 |
| Did not complete | 378 | $8,147 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $128.32/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at ATU.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 635 | $9,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 48 | $11,619 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for ATU.
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 ATU is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 14.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2135 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $11,750 |
| Middle income | $11,671 |
| High income | $10,477 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $11,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $11,000 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $9,918 |
| Independent students | $16,510 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at ATU.
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.