by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Bard College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Bard specifically, 47% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, at roughly $7,046 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $6,036. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit for a typical dependent student. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Looking at all undergraduates at Bard, freshmen included, 34% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, with a mean of $6,328 per year. It comes to 4.8% more than the $6,036 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $12,656 after two years and $25,312 after four. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 34% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,328 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 777 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,917,009 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Bard carry a median federal debt of $19,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $19,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $24,254 |
| Students who withdrew | $12,000 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Bard.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $10,250 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $28,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Bard.
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 Bard.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 257 | $27,200 |
| Completed (graduates) | 142 | $29,734 |
| Did not complete | 115 | $24,000 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $353.57/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Bard.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 220 | $28,436 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 37 | $14,761 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Bard.
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 Bard is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 464 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $18,000 |
| Middle income | $18,750 |
| High income | $19,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $18,865 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $19,000 |
| Independent students | $15,160 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Bard.
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.