by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Ouachita Baptist University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Ouachita Baptist, 73% of first-year students take on loan debt, for an average of $7,382 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,464, which is 99.3% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Looking at all undergraduates at Ouachita Baptist, freshmen included, 49% finance part of their studies with federal loans, borrowing on average $5,494 each per year. That is 0.5% above the $5,464 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $10,988 after two years and $21,976 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 | 49% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,494 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 796 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,373,382 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Ouachita Baptist carry a median federal debt of $15,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $21,050 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Ouachita Baptist.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $24,358 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $28,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Ouachita Baptist.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Ouachita Baptist.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 160 | $21,282 |
| Completed (graduates) | 100 | $27,385 |
| Did not complete | 60 | $16,808 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $325.64/mo.
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Ouachita Baptist.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Ouachita Baptist follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 5.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 268 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $14,750 |
| Middle income | $14,550 |
| High income | $15,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,793 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Ouachita Baptist.
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.
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.