by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Baylor University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Baylor, 38% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, with a typical loan of $15,571 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The average federal loan is $5,369, equal to roughly 97.6% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year 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 Baylor, 32% take out federal student loans, borrowing on average $6,535 a year. That is 21.7% above the $5,369 borrowed by freshmen.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $13,070 across two years and $26,140 over a four-year span. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 32% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,535 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 4,735 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $30,941,640 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Baylor carry a median federal debt of $19,500 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $19,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $23,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,000 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Baylor.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $8,774 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,250 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Baylor.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Baylor.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1781 | $42,709 |
| Completed (graduates) | 1366 | $50,786 |
| Did not complete | 415 | $28,729 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $603.9/mo.
Stafford loans are the federal direct-loan program most undergraduates use. The breakdown below separates borrowers who used Stafford loans from those who did not at Baylor.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1733 | $43,000 |
| No Stafford loan | 48 | $35,901 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1630 | $45,495 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 151 | $25,000 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Baylor.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Baylor follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2617 |
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 | $19,898 |
| Middle income | $21,500 |
| High income | $19,000 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $20,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $19,500 |
| Independent students | $18,750 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Baylor.
Subsidized vs. Unsubsidized Loans
With an unsubsidized loan, interest starts adding up the day the loan is disbursed, including during school. Subsidized loans, by contrast, do not accrue interest while you are enrolled at least half-time, which makes them the less expensive option when you qualify.
Did You Know?
Federal student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy in all but the rarest cases, and the government can withhold part of your income or tax refund if you default.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.