by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Briar Cliff University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At Briar Cliff specifically, 100% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, at roughly $3,736 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The average federally funded loan is $3,129, amounting to 56.9% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Counting every undergraduate at Briar Cliff, 56% take out federal student loans, borrowing on average $8,677 each per year. This works out to 177.3% more than the $3,129 freshmen take on.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $17,354 over two years and about $34,708 across a four-year program. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 56% |
| Average federal loan per year | $8,677 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 378 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $3,279,969 |
The middle borrower at Briar Cliff owes $15,506 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,506 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $23,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $12,125 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Briar Cliff.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,750 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $25,800 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,481 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Briar Cliff.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Briar Cliff.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 167 | $14,608 |
| Completed (graduates) | 52 | $19,260 |
| Did not complete | 115 | $11,915 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $229.02/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 Briar Cliff.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 155 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 12 | — |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Briar Cliff.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Briar Cliff follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 5.7% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 365 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $17,250 |
| Middle income | $16,978 |
| High income | $13,750 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,268 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,529 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $15,000 |
| Independent students | $18,223 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Briar Cliff.
The Difference Between 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.
Important to Remember
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.