by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Emory & Henry 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.
At Emory & Henry College, 61% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, borrowing on average $6,751 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The average federal loan is $5,353, which is 97.3% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Looking at all undergraduates at Emory & Henry College, freshmen included, 59% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, at an average of $6,314 per year. It comes to 18.0% higher than the $5,353 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,628 after two years and $25,256 by the fourth year. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 59% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,314 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 653 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,122,974 |
The middle borrower at Emory & Henry College owes $18,460 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $18,460 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $26,332 |
| Students who withdrew | $12,000 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Emory & Henry College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,750 |
| 25th percentile | $6,714 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $35,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Emory & Henry 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 Emory & Henry College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 289 | $25,547 |
| Completed (graduates) | 110 | $32,472 |
| Did not complete | 179 | $22,276 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $386.13/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Emory & Henry College.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 278 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 11 | — |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Emory & Henry College.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Emory & Henry College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 279 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $17,500 |
| Middle income | $18,085 |
| High income | $19,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $17,375 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,344 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $18,750 |
| Independent students | $15,750 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Emory & Henry 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.
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.