by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Boston College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Boston College, 29% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, with a typical loan of $3,607 each, across private and federal loan sources.
On the federal side, the average loan is $3,607, which is 65.6% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Looking at all undergraduates at Boston College, freshmen included, 31% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, at an average of $4,801 per year. It comes to 33.1% above the first-year federal average of $3,607.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $9,602 after two years and $19,204 by the fourth year. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 31% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,801 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,021 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $14,502,980 |
The middle borrower at Boston College owes $17,962 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $17,962 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $19,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,750 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Boston College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,000 |
| 25th percentile | $11,001 |
| 75th percentile | $19,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $19,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Boston College.
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 Boston College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1055 | $37,340 |
| Completed (graduates) | 800 | $45,000 |
| Did not complete | 255 | $27,895 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $535.1/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Boston College.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1022 | $37,092 |
| No Stafford loan | 33 | $45,077 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 807 | $43,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 248 | $25,050 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Boston College.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Boston College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 1.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2352 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $16,250 |
| Middle income | $18,000 |
| High income | $18,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $18,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $17,500 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $18,000 |
| Independent students | $11,313 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Boston College.
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
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.