by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College: 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 Louisiana State University specifically, 39% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, with a typical loan of $8,654 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,623. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit for a typical dependent student. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Counting every undergraduate at Louisiana State University, 33% borrow through federal student loan programs, averaging $6,457 in federal loans per year. This is 14.8% greater than the $5,623 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,914 over two years and about $25,828 after four. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 33% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,457 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 9,735 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $62,862,770 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Louisiana State University carry a median federal debt of $12,956 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,956 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $20,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,500 |
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 Louisiana State University.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $25,059 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Louisiana State University.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Louisiana State University.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 3246 | $21,466 |
| Completed (graduates) | 1844 | $25,645 |
| Did not complete | 1402 | $19,117 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $304.95/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 Louisiana State University.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 3080 | $21,651 |
| No Stafford loan | 166 | $20,000 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 2872 | $22,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 374 | $19,361 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Louisiana State University.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Louisiana State University appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 3644 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,250 |
| Middle income | $12,981 |
| High income | $13,182 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $13,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,000 |
| Independent students | $12,500 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Louisiana State University.
Subsidized vs. 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.