by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Norfolk State University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
Looking at the entering class at Norfolk State, 66% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, borrowing on average $11,083 per student, private and federal loans combined.
Federal loans alone average $9,653. This is at or above the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing cap that applies to the typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Counting every undergraduate at Norfolk State, 64% borrow through federal student loan programs, with a mean of $6,394 a year. This works out to 33.8% under the $9,653 freshmen take on.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $12,788 after two years and $25,576 over four years. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 64% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,394 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,520 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $22,507,848 |
The median student at Norfolk State borrows $17,277 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $17,277 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $29,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $12,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Norfolk State.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,750 |
| 25th percentile | $9,500 |
| 75th percentile | $34,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $46,750 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Norfolk State.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Norfolk State.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1257 | $18,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 292 | $19,245 |
| Did not complete | 965 | $17,083 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $228.84/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Norfolk State.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1228 | $18,061 |
| No Stafford loan | 29 | $16,943 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1173 | $18,120 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 84 | $17,013 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Norfolk State.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Norfolk State is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 17.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1960 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $18,270 |
| Middle income | $16,000 |
| High income | $15,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $17,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $18,750 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $16,000 |
| Independent students | $19,569 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Norfolk State.
The Difference Between Subsidized and 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
Declaring bankruptcy does not erase federal student loan debt. If you stop paying, the federal government can garnish a portion of your wages until the loans are repaid.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.