by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Empire Beauty School-Thornton: 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 Empire Beauty School-Thornton, 67% of first-year students take on loan debt, at roughly $7,463 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The typical federal loan comes to $7,463. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit for a typical dependent student. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Across the full undergraduate body at Empire Beauty School-Thornton (freshmen included), 55% borrow through federal student loan programs, borrowing on average $7,451 a year. This works out to 0.2% smaller than the first-year federal average of $7,463.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $14,902 after two years and $29,804 across a four-year program. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 55% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,451 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 95 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $707,858 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Empire Beauty School-Thornton carry a median federal debt of $6,756 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $6,756 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $10,667 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,750 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Empire Beauty School-Thornton.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $4,750 |
| 75th percentile | $11,771 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $15,051 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Empire Beauty School-Thornton.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Empire Beauty School-Thornton.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 366 | $6,247 |
| Completed (graduates) | 200 | $7,471 |
| Did not complete | 166 | $5,254 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $88.84/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Empire Beauty School-Thornton.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 355 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 11 | — |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 337 | $6,428 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 29 | $5,546 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Empire Beauty School-Thornton.
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 Empire Beauty School-Thornton is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 8.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 236 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,638 |
| Middle income | $7,334 |
| High income | $7,389 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,646 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,389 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $6,222 |
| Independent students | $7,389 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Empire Beauty School-Thornton.
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.