by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Lake Superior State University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Lake Superior State University, 48% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, with a typical loan of $8,280 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
The average federal loan is $4,879, representing 88.7% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Counting every undergraduate at Lake Superior State University, 44% take out federal student loans, for a typical $6,633 annually. It comes to 35.9% greater than the $4,879 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $13,266 across two years and $26,532 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 | 44% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,633 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 618 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,099,124 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Lake Superior State University carry a median federal debt of $14,764 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $14,764 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $23,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Lake Superior State University.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,000 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $35,250 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Lake Superior State University.
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 Lake Superior State University.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 226 | $16,873 |
| Completed (graduates) | 108 | $23,414 |
| Did not complete | 118 | $12,989 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $278.42/mo.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Lake Superior State University.
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 Lake Superior State University follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 10.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 692 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,276 |
| Middle income | $15,250 |
| High income | $15,993 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $13,979 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,750 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $15,000 |
| Independent students | $12,500 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Lake Superior State University.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Unsubsidized federal student loans accrue interest every month — even while you are still enrolled. Unless you pay that interest as it builds, the balance you owe at graduation can be noticeably higher than the amount you originally borrowed.
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.