by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Texas State University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Texas State, 48% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, for an average of $6,695 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,199, which is 94.5% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Texas State, 41% rely on federal student loans toward their education, at an average of $6,168 a year. This works out to 18.6% larger than the $5,199 borrowed by freshmen.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $12,336 after two years and $24,672 over four years. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 41% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,168 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 14,170 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $87,400,406 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Texas State carry a median federal debt of $14,993 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $14,993 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $21,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Texas State.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $5,679 |
| 75th percentile | $24,994 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $32,193 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Texas State.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Texas State.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 6549 | $17,400 |
| Completed (graduates) | 3977 | $22,500 |
| Did not complete | 2572 | $13,410 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $267.55/mo.
Stafford loans are the federal direct-loan program most undergraduates use. The breakdown below separates borrowers who used Stafford loans from those who did not at Texas State.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 6385 | $17,578 |
| No Stafford loan | 164 | $14,158 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 6168 | $17,642 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 381 | $14,605 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Texas State.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Texas State appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 7.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 6469 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $14,966 |
| Middle income | $14,835 |
| High income | $15,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,524 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,500 |
| Independent students | $16,688 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Texas State.
The Difference Between 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.
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.