by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Methodist University, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Methodist, 70% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, averaging $7,643 per student, private and federal loans combined.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,561. 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 Methodist, 58% take out federal student loans, with a mean of $6,737 per year. That amounts to 21.1% larger than the $5,561 borrowed by freshmen.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $13,474 by year two and around $26,948 after four. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 58% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,737 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 833 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,612,200 |
The middle borrower at Methodist owes $12,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $27,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Methodist.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $26,770 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,500 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Methodist.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Methodist.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 357 | $24,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 175 | $36,335 |
| Did not complete | 182 | $16,572 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $432.06/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Methodist.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 344 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 13 | — |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Methodist.
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 Methodist follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 7.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 672 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $13,250 |
| High income | $13,000 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,000 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $12,250 |
| Independent students | $12,625 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Methodist.
Subsidized vs. 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.
Important to Remember
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.