by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Chadron State College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Chadron State College, 58% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, averaging $4,703 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
Federal loans alone average $4,114, which is 74.8% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
Across the full undergraduate body at Chadron State College (freshmen included), 54% rely on federal student loans toward their education, borrowing on average $5,374 per year. That is 30.6% greater than the first-year federal average of $4,114.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $10,748 over two years and about $21,496 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 | 54% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,374 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 885 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,755,772 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Chadron State College carry a median federal debt of $11,343 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $11,343 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $18,875 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,335 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Chadron State College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $4,750 |
| 75th percentile | $18,882 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $27,755 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Chadron State College.
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 Chadron State College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 371 | $10,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 159 | $10,035 |
| Did not complete | 212 | $9,668 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $119.33/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Chadron State College.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 302 | $9,469 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 69 | $13,470 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Chadron State College.
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 Chadron State College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 600 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $9,500 |
| Middle income | $11,813 |
| High income | $12,000 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $11,130 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,202 |
| Independent students | $12,500 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Chadron State College.
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
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.