by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Michigan Technological University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Michigan Tech specifically, 50% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, averaging $8,143 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,032, or about 91.5% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. 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 Michigan Tech, 46% finance part of their studies with federal loans, at an average of $6,013 annually. This is 19.5% greater than the $5,032 freshmen take on.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $12,026 after two years and $24,052 by the fourth year. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 46% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,013 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 2,684 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $16,137,762 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Michigan Tech carry a median federal debt of $20,500 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $24,990 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,750 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Michigan Tech.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,279 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $30,100 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $38,300 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Michigan Tech.
The figures above count only the students own federal loans. Adding PLUS loans (borrowed by parents or graduate students) gives a fuller picture of total borrowing at Michigan Tech.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 528 | $24,705 |
| Completed (graduates) | 359 | $29,300 |
| Did not complete | 169 | $18,522 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $348.41/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Michigan Tech.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 490 | $25,623 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 38 | $11,432 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Michigan Tech.
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 Michigan Tech follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.8% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1263 |
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 | $20,875 |
| Middle income | $20,093 |
| High income | $20,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $20,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $20,186 |
| Independent students | $25,000 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Michigan Tech.
The Difference Between 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.
Important to Remember
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.