by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend McKendree University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Looking at the entering class at McKendree, 57% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, borrowing on average $6,547 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,145, representing 93.5% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Across the full undergraduate body at McKendree (freshmen included), 42% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, for a typical $6,071 in federal loans per year. That is 18.0% greater than the freshman federal average of $5,145.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $12,142 across two years and $24,284 by the fourth year. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 42% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,071 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 668 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,055,184 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at McKendree carry a median federal debt of $16,240 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $16,240 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $23,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for McKendree.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,000 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $26,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $34,177 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at McKendree.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for McKendree.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 443 | $17,040 |
| Completed (graduates) | 258 | $22,582 |
| Did not complete | 185 | $12,075 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $268.52/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 McKendree.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 431 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 12 | — |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 390 | $18,135 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 53 | $10,631 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at McKendree.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for McKendree follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 5.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 833 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
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 | $15,813 |
| Middle income | $14,522 |
| High income | $18,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $16,725 |
| Continuing-generation students | $15,400 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $16,363 |
| Independent students | $16,215 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at McKendree.
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.
Did You Know?
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.