by our College Data Analytics TeamThe majority of students will not be asked to pay the advertised price of a school. Instead, they will be provided a financial aid package that will include a combination of scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study. The sum total of attendance at Harding University can sound overwhelming, but bear in mind that many students get some type of financial aid.
What financing options does Harding offer, and what will you qualify for? Keep scrolling for more information. Keep going to see just how much financial aid could be open to you.
Eligibility for aid and scholarships is driven mostly by your household’s income and need. The figures below will help you estimate the aid you might receive from Harding University.
Financial assistance, available as scholarships, loans, and work-study, is a way schools lower the price of attendance so many students can enroll. Bear in mind that not all aid is equal, and the amount any one student receives can vary widely.
Among first-time, full-time freshmen at Harding University, 100% of entering full-time freshmen got some type of financial assistance roughly 858 first-years).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 98% | $16,763 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 98% | $14,835 |
| Federal Pell grants | 23% | $5,088 |
| State/local grants | 22% | $3,024 |
| Federal student loans | 46% | $5,357 |
Gift aid — grants and scholarships — beats loans every time because none of it has to be repaid. At Harding, approximately 94% of undergrads got grants or scholarships worth on average $16,442 (across roughly 3173 undergraduates).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 94% | $16,442 |
| Federal Pell grants | 24% | $5,204 |
| Federal student loans | 44% | $10,055 |
Title-IV recipients living on campus saw average grant aid of $17,404.
Since aid is largely need-based, the real cost of attendance falls steeply for lower-income families.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $16,470 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $17,794 |
| Over $75,000 | $22,921 |
Each amount is the average cost remaining once grant aid is subtracted, by income band.
After grants and scholarships come off the published price, what remains is the net price — the best estimate of true out-of-pocket cost.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $22,130 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $20,579 |
For a personalized estimate based on your family’s financial situation, use Harding’s official net price calculator: www.harding.edu/about/offices-departments/finaid/index.html.
The median student at Harding graduates with $21,601 of federal student loans.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $21,601 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $26,500 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $280.94/mo |
That monthly figure reflects the median graduate debt repaid on a standard 10-year federal schedule.
Percentiles reveal the spread — half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles. The figures below chart the debt distribution at Harding.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,500 |
| 25th percentile | $8,020 |
| 75th percentile | $29,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,500 |
Outcomes differ by income bracket, by first-generation status, and by whether a student is financially dependent.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $22,214 |
| Middle income | $23,125 |
| High income | $21,480 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $22,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $21,500 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $21,931 |
| Independent students | $20,500 |
A handful of calculated indicators summarize the debt outlook at Harding.
Stafford loans make up the bulk of federal direct lending to undergraduates. The totals below capture Stafford lending at Harding:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 16925 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $530,210,981 |
The GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the main federal aid routes for veterans and service members.
Post-9/11 GI Bill activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 44 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $856,683 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $19,470 |
DoD program volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 5 |
| Total DoD amount | $10,250 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $2,050 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.