by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
For undergraduates overall at UTHealth, 72% rely on federal student loans toward their education, for a typical $7,894 per year.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $15,788 across two years and $31,576 by the fourth year. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 72% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,894 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 329 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,597,268 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at UTHealth carry a median federal debt of $12,500 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $13,063 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for UTHealth.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $8,332 |
| 75th percentile | $21,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $25,000 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at UTHealth.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at UTHealth.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 411 | $17,287 |
| Completed (graduates) | 332 | $19,446 |
| Did not complete | 79 | $14,000 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $231.23/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 UTHealth.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 275 | $16,811 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 136 | $17,596 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. UTHealth.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. Two-year cohort default-rate data for UTHealth follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 0.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 609 |
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 | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $12,500 |
| High income | $12,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,000 |
| Independent students | $15,000 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at UTHealth.
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
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.