by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Quinnipiac 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 Quinnipiac, 67% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, at roughly $12,996 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,356, equal to roughly 97.4% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Across the full undergraduate body at Quinnipiac (freshmen included), 60% borrow through federal student loan programs, borrowing on average $6,394 each per year. This works out to 19.4% larger than the $5,356 borrowed by freshmen.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $12,788 after two years and $25,576 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 | 60% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,394 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,714 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $23,746,766 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Quinnipiac carry a median federal debt of $21,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $21,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $26,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $12,000 |
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 Quinnipiac.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $11,000 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $29,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Quinnipiac.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Quinnipiac.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1214 | $50,960 |
| Completed (graduates) | 821 | $64,334 |
| Did not complete | 393 | $32,209 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $765.0/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Quinnipiac.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1117 | $56,550 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 97 | $15,996 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Quinnipiac.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Quinnipiac follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 1.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1793 |
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 | $19,500 |
| Middle income | $22,899 |
| High income | $21,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $22,261 |
| Continuing-generation students | $20,500 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $22,271 |
| Independent students | $12,500 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Quinnipiac.
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.
Did You Know?
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.