by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend California State University-Channel Islands: 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 CSUCI, 30% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $5,445 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $4,614, amounting to 83.9% 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.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at CSUCI, 24% take out federal student loans, at an average of $7,035 a year. It comes to 52.5% above the $4,614 typical freshmen borrow.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $14,070 by year two and around $28,140 over four years. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 24% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,035 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,267 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $8,912,869 |
The middle borrower at CSUCI owes $12,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $15,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,915 |
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 CSUCI.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,678 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $21,883 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $30,500 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at CSUCI.
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 CSUCI.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 708 | $20,659 |
| Completed (graduates) | 428 | $22,033 |
| Did not complete | 280 | $18,966 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $262.0/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at CSUCI.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 664 | $20,541 |
| No Stafford loan | 44 | $21,853 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 570 | $20,733 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 138 | $20,562 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for CSUCI.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The federal two-year cohort default rate for CSUCI follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 713 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $12,000 |
| High income | $12,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,287 |
| Independent students | $13,979 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at CSUCI.
Subsidized and 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.