by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Lewis University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Lewis, 53% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, borrowing on average $8,799 per student, private and federal loans combined.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,118, representing 93.1% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. 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 Lewis, 45% take out federal student loans, at an average of $6,843 annually. This works out to 33.7% above the $5,118 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $13,686 across two years and $27,372 over a four-year span. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 45% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,843 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,665 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $11,394,243 |
The middle borrower at Lewis owes $18,750 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $18,750 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $21,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $11,000 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Lewis.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $10,500 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $32,528 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Lewis.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Lewis.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 952 | $20,942 |
| Completed (graduates) | 625 | $23,044 |
| Did not complete | 327 | $18,000 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $274.02/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Lewis.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 939 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 13 | — |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 800 | $21,426 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 152 | $15,000 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Lewis.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Lewis follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1515 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $18,500 |
| Middle income | $19,112 |
| High income | $18,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $18,832 |
| Continuing-generation students | $18,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $18,500 |
| Independent students | $19,748 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Lewis.
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.