by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for SUNY College at Geneseo, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At SUNY Geneseo, 62% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, at roughly $7,174 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,162, amounting to 93.9% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at SUNY Geneseo, 51% take out federal student loans, averaging $6,128 in federal loans per year. That amounts to 18.7% greater than the freshman federal average of $5,162.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $12,256 over two years and about $24,512 over four years. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 51% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,128 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,962 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $12,022,970 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at SUNY Geneseo carry a median federal debt of $14,836 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $14,836 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $19,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,500 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for SUNY Geneseo.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,500 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,490 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at SUNY Geneseo.
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 SUNY Geneseo.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 588 | $19,195 |
| Completed (graduates) | 325 | $22,092 |
| Did not complete | 263 | $16,625 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $262.7/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at SUNY Geneseo.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 578 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 10 | — |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 565 | $19,268 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 23 | $9,145 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for SUNY Geneseo.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for SUNY Geneseo follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 1.7% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1152 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,500 |
| Middle income | $15,000 |
| High income | $15,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $14,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $15,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,999 |
| Independent students | $13,419 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for SUNY Geneseo.
Subsidized vs. Unsubsidized Loans
Subsidized loans pause interest while you are in school; unsubsidized loans do not. That difference compounds over four years, so the type of loan you take matters as much as the amount.
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.
