by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for South University-West Palm Beach: 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.
Looking at the entering class at South University, West Palm Beach, 100% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, at roughly $5,100 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,100, or about 92.7% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
Looking at all undergraduates at South University, West Palm Beach, freshmen included, 68% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $8,205 each per year. This is 60.9% more than the $5,100 typical freshmen borrow.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $16,410 after two years and $32,820 after four. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 68% |
| Average federal loan per year | $8,205 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 193 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,583,518 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at South University, West Palm Beach carry a median federal debt of $13,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $13,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $26,123 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,500 |
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 South University, West Palm Beach.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,501 |
| 25th percentile | $4,750 |
| 75th percentile | $22,542 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,500 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at South University, West Palm Beach.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for South University, West Palm Beach.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1565 | $9,598 |
| Completed (graduates) | 743 | $10,629 |
| Did not complete | 822 | $9,000 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $126.39/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at South University, West Palm Beach.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1367 | $9,690 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 198 | $9,256 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. South University, West Palm Beach.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for South University, West Palm Beach follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 17.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 20558 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,643 |
| Middle income | $15,278 |
| High income | $14,700 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,883 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,576 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,668 |
| Independent students | $12,990 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for South University, West Palm Beach.
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.
Important to Remember
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.