by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Illinois Media School— 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.
Among first-year students at Illinois Media School, 80% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, averaging $8,155 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $8,155. 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.
For undergraduates overall at Illinois Media School, 57% finance part of their studies with federal loans, borrowing on average $7,305 annually. That amounts to 10.4% below the $8,155 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $14,610 in two years and roughly $29,220 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 | 57% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,305 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 81 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $591,733 |
The middle borrower at Illinois Media School owes $9,500 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $9,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $9,500 |
| 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Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Illinois Media School.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $9,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $9,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Illinois Media School.
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 Illinois Media School.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 94 | $13,110 |
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Illinois Media School.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 72 | $12,503 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 22 | $14,389 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Illinois Media School.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Illinois Media School appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 5.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 295 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
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 | $9,500 |
| Middle income | $9,500 |
| High income | $5,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $9,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $9,500 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Illinois Media School.
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.
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.