by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Judson University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
Looking at the entering class at Judson, 56% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, averaging $5,369 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
The average federal loan is $3,576, which is 65.0% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Across the full undergraduate body at Judson (freshmen included), 56% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, averaging $4,317 each per year. This works out to 20.7% greater than the first-year federal average of $3,576.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $8,634 over two years and about $17,268 over four years. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 56% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,317 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 437 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,886,702 |
The median student at Judson borrows $14,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $14,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,940 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Judson.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $7,833 |
| 75th percentile | $26,242 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,775 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Judson.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Judson.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 140 | $13,115 |
| Completed (graduates) | 63 | $26,048 |
| Did not complete | 77 | $9,000 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $309.74/mo.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Judson.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Judson appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 5.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 398 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,579 |
| Middle income | $14,000 |
| High income | $14,875 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $13,219 |
| Continuing-generation students | $15,615 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,000 |
| Independent students | $14,108 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Judson.
Subsidized vs. 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
Unlike most other debt, federal student loans generally survive bankruptcy — and unpaid balances can lead to wage garnishment — so borrow only what you truly need.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.