by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Capital University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
Looking at the entering class at Capital, 66% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, averaging $8,068 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,668. This meets or exceeds the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Looking at all undergraduates at Capital, freshmen included, 63% rely on federal student loans toward their education, for a typical $6,729 a year. This is 18.7% larger than the $5,668 freshmen take on.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $13,458 across two years and $26,916 across a four-year program. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 63% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,729 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,080 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $7,267,843 |
The middle borrower at Capital owes $20,927 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,927 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $26,889 |
| Students who withdrew | $10,274 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Capital.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,518 |
| 25th percentile | $8,250 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,333 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Capital.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Capital.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 599 | $23,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 339 | $28,132 |
| Did not complete | 260 | $17,781 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $334.52/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Capital.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 589 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 10 | — |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 555 | $23,660 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 44 | $17,382 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Capital.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Capital appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1137 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $23,000 |
| Middle income | $19,500 |
| High income | $21,354 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $21,479 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $20,500 |
| Independent students | $25,000 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Capital.
The Difference Between 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
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.