by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Grambling State University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At GSU, 79% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, borrowing on average $6,437 each, across private and federal loan sources.
On the federal side, the average loan is $6,437. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit for a typical dependent student. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Looking at all undergraduates at GSU, freshmen included, 80% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, borrowing on average $7,158 annually. That amounts to 11.2% larger than the $6,437 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $14,316 over two years and about $28,632 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 | 80% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,158 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,330 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $23,836,712 |
The median student at GSU borrows $24,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $24,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $36,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $14,250 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 GSU.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,750 |
| 25th percentile | $8,250 |
| 75th percentile | $39,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $50,250 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at GSU.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at GSU.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1465 | $15,450 |
| Completed (graduates) | 601 | $21,007 |
| Did not complete | 864 | $13,393 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $249.8/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at GSU.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1431 | $15,703 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 34 | $9,912 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at GSU.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for GSU is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 12.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1333 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $25,750 |
| Middle income | $20,000 |
| High income | $17,625 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $24,708 |
| Continuing-generation students | $24,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $23,250 |
| Independent students | $31,250 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for GSU.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
With an unsubsidized loan, interest starts adding up the day the loan is disbursed, including during school. Subsidized loans, by contrast, do not accrue interest while you are enrolled at least half-time, which makes them the less expensive option when you qualify.
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.