by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Mercyhurst University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Mercyhurst, 68% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, averaging $10,484 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,292, which is 96.2% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Mercyhurst, 67% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, for a typical $6,462 annually. That amounts to 22.1% larger than the first-year federal average of $5,292.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $12,924 after two years and $25,848 over a four-year span. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 67% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,462 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,483 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $9,583,605 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Mercyhurst carry a median federal debt of $19,500 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $19,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,305 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,250 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Mercyhurst.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,750 |
| 25th percentile | $8,250 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,976 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Mercyhurst.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Mercyhurst.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 563 | $20,910 |
| Completed (graduates) | 343 | $25,932 |
| Did not complete | 220 | $15,511 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $308.36/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Mercyhurst.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 539 | $21,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 24 | $14,236 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Mercyhurst.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Mercyhurst follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 10.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1527 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $18,998 |
| Middle income | $19,000 |
| High income | $19,750 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $19,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $19,500 |
| Independent students | $20,000 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Mercyhurst.
Subsidized and 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.
Did You Know?
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.