by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Augustana University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At Augustana Sioux Falls specifically, 56% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, borrowing on average $7,522 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,161, which is 93.8% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Augustana Sioux Falls, 53% rely on federal student loans toward their education, averaging $6,446 in federal loans per year. That amounts to 24.9% higher than the $5,161 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,892 by year two and around $25,784 after four. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 53% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,446 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 967 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $6,233,357 |
The middle borrower at Augustana Sioux Falls owes $21,250 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $21,250 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Augustana Sioux Falls.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,384 |
| 25th percentile | $10,648 |
| 75th percentile | $28,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $32,267 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Augustana Sioux Falls.
The figures above count only the students own federal loans. Adding PLUS loans (borrowed by parents or graduate students) gives a fuller picture of total borrowing at Augustana Sioux Falls.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 135 | $21,373 |
| Completed (graduates) | 97 | $23,546 |
| Did not complete | 38 | $17,079 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $279.99/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Augustana Sioux Falls.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 98 | $22,500 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 37 | $15,000 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Augustana Sioux Falls.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Augustana Sioux Falls is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 453 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $19,385 |
| Middle income | $21,344 |
| High income | $21,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $21,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,500 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $21,500 |
| Independent students | $16,624 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Augustana Sioux Falls.
Subsidized vs. 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.