by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Beacon College— 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 Beacon, 32% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, for an average of $6,023 each, across private and federal loan sources.
Federal loans alone average $5,316, representing 96.7% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Across the full undergraduate body at Beacon (freshmen included), 35% borrow through federal student loan programs, at an average of $6,512 each per year. It comes to 22.5% above the $5,316 freshmen take on.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $13,024 over two years and about $26,048 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 | 35% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,512 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 184 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,198,256 |
The middle borrower at Beacon owes $18,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $18,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,500 |
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 Beacon.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,955 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $19,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $27,625 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Beacon.
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 Beacon.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 75 | $61,040 |
| Completed (graduates) | 53 | $75,103 |
| Did not complete | 22 | $41,437 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $893.05/mo.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Beacon.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Beacon is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 20 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $21,500 |
| Middle income | $20,125 |
| High income | $15,749 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $21,250 |
| Continuing-generation students | $17,500 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $17,750 |
| Independent students | $21,945 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Beacon.
Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Subsidized loans pause interest while you are in school; unsubsidized loans do not. That difference compounds over four years, so the type of loan you take matters as much as the amount.
Worth Knowing
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.