by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Paul Smiths College of Arts and Science: 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.
For incoming students at Paul Smith’s College, 73% of first-year students take on loan debt, with a typical loan of $10,942 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
Federal loans alone average $7,452. That is at or past the $5,500 federal first-year limit for the typical dependent freshman. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Counting every undergraduate at Paul Smith’s College, 72% rely on federal student loans toward their education, borrowing on average $6,054 per year. It comes to 18.8% under the $7,452 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,108 after two years and $24,216 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 | 72% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,054 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 421 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,548,705 |
The middle borrower at Paul Smith’s College owes $17,062 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $17,062 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $22,750 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,250 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Paul Smith’s College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $8,250 |
| 75th percentile | $26,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $29,750 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Paul Smith’s College.
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 Paul Smith’s College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 169 | $28,729 |
| Completed (graduates) | 100 | $39,759 |
| Did not complete | 69 | $11,761 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $472.78/mo.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Paul Smith’s College.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Paul Smith’s College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 8.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 382 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,581 |
| Middle income | $17,281 |
| High income | $18,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $17,250 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,750 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $16,575 |
| Independent students | $22,000 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Paul Smith’s College.
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.
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.