by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Florida International 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.
Among first-year students at FIU, 10% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $5,751 each, across private and federal loan sources.
On the federal side, the average loan is $4,966, amounting to 90.3% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
For undergraduates overall at FIU, 19% borrow through federal student loan programs, borrowing on average $7,285 in federal loans per year. That is 46.7% greater than the $4,966 freshmen take on.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $14,570 by year two and around $29,140 after four. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 19% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,285 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 7,438 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $54,188,589 |
The median student at FIU borrows $14,246 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $14,246 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $16,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $10,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for FIU.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $25,736 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $36,250 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at FIU.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at FIU.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 2088 | $13,973 |
| Completed (graduates) | 1199 | $13,610 |
| Did not complete | 889 | $14,670 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $161.84/mo.
Stafford loans are the federal direct-loan program most undergraduates use. The breakdown below separates borrowers who used Stafford loans from those who did not at FIU.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 2051 | $13,888 |
| No Stafford loan | 37 | $16,128 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1525 | $13,059 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 563 | $15,784 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at FIU.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for FIU follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 6886 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
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 | $14,500 |
| Middle income | $13,750 |
| High income | $15,000 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $14,308 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $12,804 |
| Independent students | $17,750 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at FIU.
The Difference Between 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
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.