by our College Data Analytics TeamA large number of students are not billed the complete price tag of a school. Rather, they are presented a financial aid deal that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The price tag of going to Southwest Minnesota State University can appear overpowering, but remember that the majority of students obtain some kind of financial assistance.
Just what financing solutions does Southwest Minnesota State University deliver, and just what are you going to be eligible for? Keep scrolling for answers. Keep reading to learn what amount of financial assistance will be accessible to you.
Eligibility for aid and scholarships is driven mostly by your household’s income and need. Read on to get a sense of the financial assistance available at Southwest Minnesota State University.
Financial aid, in the form of loans, grants, work-study, and scholarships, is one way colleges reduce the cost of attendance so most students can actually afford to attend. However, some types of aid are more desirable than others, and some students will receive more than others.
Looking at the entering class at Southwest Minnesota State University, 97% of first-year full-time students received aid of some kind some 338 new students).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 94% | $8,674 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 92% | $4,059 |
| Federal Pell grants | 43% | $5,392 |
| State/local grants | 48% | $4,118 |
| Federal student loans | 57% | $5,414 |
Unlike loans, grants and scholarships are gift aid that does not need to be paid back, making them the most desirable form of assistance. At Southwest Minnesota State University, roughly 24% of undergrads got grants or scholarships worth on average $7,386 (across approximately 1662 undergraduates).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 24% | $7,386 |
| Federal Pell grants | 12% | $4,604 |
| Federal student loans | 15% | $6,873 |
Title-IV recipients living on campus saw average grant aid of $9,466.
Because need-based aid scales with family income, what students actually pay differs sharply across income brackets.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $10,313 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $12,186 |
| Over $75,000 | $18,213 |
Remember these are net prices — what families pay after gift aid, not before.
After grants and scholarships come off the published price, what remains is the net price — the best estimate of true out-of-pocket cost.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $15,291 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $14,760 |
For an estimate tailored to your family circumstances, see Southwest Minnesota State University’s net price tool: www.minnstate.edu/admissions/calculator/southwestmsu.html?_ga=2.135537657.998509588.1537211262-179850922.1537211262.
The median student at Southwest Minnesota State University graduates with $14,250 in federal loans.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $14,250 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $20,500 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $217.33/mo |
The 10-year payment estimate assumes a standard federal repayment plan and the median graduate debt amount.
The median alone does not show how widely outcomes vary across the student body. The percentiles below describe the cumulative federal debt distribution for borrowers at Southwest Minnesota State University.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,000 |
| 25th percentile | $5,520 |
| 75th percentile | $25,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,500 |
Debt outcomes are not uniform — they shift with income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,947 |
| Middle income | $13,743 |
| High income | $15,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Median Debt
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $13,430 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,587 |
Dependent vs Independent Students
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,250 |
| Independent students | $14,700 |
A handful of calculated indicators summarize the debt outlook at Southwest Minnesota State University.
Most undergraduate borrowing runs through the federal Stafford loan program. The aggregate figures below show how active the program is at Southwest Minnesota State University:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 10611 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $172,430,941 |
The GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the main federal aid routes for veterans and service members.
GI Bill volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 16 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $94,281 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $5,893 |
DoD program volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 18 |
| Total DoD amount | $67,250 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $3,736 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.