by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga: 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.
At UT Chattanooga, 43% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, for an average of $7,322 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
The average federal loan is $5,129, or about 93.3% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. 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 UT Chattanooga, 38% borrow through federal student loan programs, with a mean of $6,188 each per year. It comes to 20.6% higher than the $5,129 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $12,376 across two years and $24,752 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 38% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,188 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,706 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $22,933,738 |
The median student at UT Chattanooga borrows $12,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $19,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at UT Chattanooga.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,900 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $24,250 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,000 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at UT Chattanooga.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for UT Chattanooga.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 907 | $15,313 |
| Completed (graduates) | 488 | $17,353 |
| Did not complete | 419 | $14,000 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $206.35/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at UT Chattanooga.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 889 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 18 | — |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 820 | $15,315 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 87 | $14,246 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at UT Chattanooga.
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 UT Chattanooga is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2040 |
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 | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $11,750 |
| High income | $12,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,013 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,670 |
| Independent students | $14,729 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at UT Chattanooga.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.