by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Portland State University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Portland State University, 33% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, at roughly $6,762 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $4,780, equal to roughly 86.9% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a 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 Portland State University, 38% finance part of their studies with federal loans, with a mean of $7,167 in federal loans per year. That is 49.9% more than the $4,780 borrowed by freshmen.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $14,334 over two years and about $28,668 across a four-year program. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 38% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,167 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 5,142 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $36,853,587 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Portland State University carry a median federal debt of $15,457 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,457 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $20,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $11,000 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Portland State University.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $6,998 |
| 75th percentile | $27,221 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,500 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Portland State University.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Portland State University.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 2243 | $17,755 |
| Completed (graduates) | 1142 | $18,859 |
| Did not complete | 1101 | $16,876 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $224.25/mo.
Stafford loans are the federal direct-loan program most undergraduates use. The breakdown below separates borrowers who used Stafford loans from those who did not at Portland State University.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 2209 | $17,862 |
| No Stafford loan | 34 | $15,248 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1741 | $17,806 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 502 | $17,729 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Portland State University.
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 Portland State University is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 6708 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $18,000 |
| Middle income | $14,000 |
| High income | $14,000 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,870 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,818 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,000 |
| Independent students | $19,982 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Portland State University.
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
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.