by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Caldwell University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Looking at the entering class at Caldwell, 66% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, with a typical loan of $3,460 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
The average federally funded loan is $2,779, which is 50.5% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the 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.
For undergraduates overall at Caldwell, 64% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, for a typical $3,950 annually. It comes to 42.1% higher than the freshman federal average of $2,779.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $7,900 after two years and $15,800 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 64% |
| Average federal loan per year | $3,950 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 928 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $3,665,658 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Caldwell carry a median federal debt of $18,500 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $18,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $10,587 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Caldwell.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,750 |
| 25th percentile | $9,500 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $40,000 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Caldwell.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Caldwell.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 347 | $19,683 |
| Completed (graduates) | 177 | $21,989 |
| Did not complete | 170 | $16,070 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $261.47/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Caldwell.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 315 | $19,683 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 32 | $19,538 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Caldwell.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Caldwell is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 559 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
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 | $17,500 |
| Middle income | $18,750 |
| High income | $19,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $18,750 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,000 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $17,750 |
| Independent students | $21,232 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Caldwell.
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.
Did You Know?
Unlike most other debt, federal student loans generally survive bankruptcy — and unpaid balances can lead to wage garnishment — so borrow only what you truly need.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.