by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Centenary College of Louisiana: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Centenary Louisiana, 73% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, borrowing on average $6,592 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,082, representing 92.4% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Across the full undergraduate body at Centenary Louisiana (freshmen included), 69% borrow through federal student loan programs, with a mean of $6,071 a year. That amounts to 19.5% more than the $5,082 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,142 after two years and $24,284 after four. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 69% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,071 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 430 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,610,440 |
The middle borrower at Centenary Louisiana owes $15,250 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,250 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $27,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
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 Centenary Louisiana.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,000 |
| 25th percentile | $6,276 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $35,075 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Centenary Louisiana.
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 Centenary Louisiana.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 85 | $23,440 |
| Completed (graduates) | 46 | $30,775 |
| Did not complete | 39 | $17,055 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $365.95/mo.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Centenary Louisiana.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Centenary Louisiana appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 9.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 155 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $11,000 |
| Middle income | $15,250 |
| High income | $16,625 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $18,000 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Centenary Louisiana.
Subsidized vs. 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
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.