by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Simpson College— 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.
Among first-year students at Simpson College, 70% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, with a typical loan of $7,218 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federally funded loan is $5,413, equal to roughly 98.4% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Across the full undergraduate body at Simpson College (freshmen included), 71% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, with a mean of $6,401 per year. That amounts to 18.3% higher than the freshman federal average of $5,413.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $12,802 by year two and around $25,604 over a four-year span. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 71% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,401 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 805 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,152,739 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Simpson College carry a median federal debt of $20,262 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,262 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $26,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,895 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Simpson College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $11,191 |
| 75th percentile | $29,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $35,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Simpson 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 Simpson College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 170 | $20,007 |
| Completed (graduates) | 108 | $23,702 |
| Did not complete | 62 | $14,061 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $281.84/mo.
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Simpson 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 Simpson College follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 2.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 561 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $15,473 |
| Middle income | $17,500 |
| High income | $22,738 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $18,586 |
| Continuing-generation students | $22,048 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $20,500 |
| Independent students | $17,438 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Simpson College.
Subsidized vs. 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.
Worth Knowing
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.