by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Ramapo College of New Jersey— 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 Ramapo College specifically, 46% of first-year students take on loan debt, for an average of $9,860 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federally funded loan is $5,377, amounting to 97.8% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Counting every undergraduate at Ramapo College, 40% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, borrowing on average $6,432 a year. It comes to 19.6% greater than the $5,377 borrowed by freshmen.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $12,864 over two years and about $25,728 by the fourth year. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 40% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,432 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,885 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $12,124,518 |
The middle borrower at Ramapo College owes $15,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $21,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,250 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Ramapo College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,250 |
| 25th percentile | $9,012 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $30,750 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Ramapo College.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Ramapo College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 749 | $24,335 |
| Completed (graduates) | 418 | $27,655 |
| Did not complete | 331 | $19,321 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $328.85/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Ramapo College.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 733 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 16 | — |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 665 | $25,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 84 | $20,000 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Ramapo College.
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 Ramapo College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1183 |
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 | $16,471 |
| Middle income | $14,500 |
| High income | $14,750 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,250 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,604 |
| Independent students | $18,750 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Ramapo College.
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
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.