by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend James Madison University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At JMU specifically, 35% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, for an average of $9,773 per student, private and federal loans combined.
Federal loans alone average $5,154, representing 93.7% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at JMU, 30% take out federal student loans, borrowing on average $5,924 a year. This is 14.9% greater than the $5,154 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $11,848 by year two and around $23,696 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 30% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,924 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 6,099 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $36,131,585 |
The middle borrower at JMU owes $17,272 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $17,272 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $20,093 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,250 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 JMU.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,338 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $26,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $29,680 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at JMU.
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 JMU.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 2790 | $32,402 |
| Completed (graduates) | 2152 | $37,285 |
| Did not complete | 638 | $19,936 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $443.36/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 JMU.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 2615 | $32,522 |
| No Stafford loan | 175 | $27,959 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 2461 | $33,874 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 329 | $21,000 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. JMU.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. Two-year cohort default-rate data for JMU appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 2.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2513 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $15,500 |
| Middle income | $16,161 |
| High income | $17,963 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $17,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $17,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $17,500 |
| Independent students | $12,500 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at JMU.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Subsidized loans pause interest while you are in school; unsubsidized loans do not. That difference compounds over four years, so the type of loan you take matters as much as the amount.
Worth Knowing
Federal student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy in all but the rarest cases, and the government can withhold part of your income or tax refund if you default.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.