by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Transylvania University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
For incoming students at Transylvania, 48% of first-year students take on loan debt, with a typical loan of $7,920 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,266, equal to roughly 95.7% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Looking at all undergraduates at Transylvania, freshmen included, 47% take out federal student loans, with a mean of $6,360 per year. This is 20.8% larger than the $5,266 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,720 in two years and roughly $25,440 by the fourth year. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 47% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,360 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 479 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $3,046,575 |
The middle borrower at Transylvania owes $20,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $27,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Transylvania.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,625 |
| 25th percentile | $9,128 |
| 75th percentile | $27,590 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Transylvania.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Transylvania.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 109 | $41,521 |
| Completed (graduates) | 74 | $53,813 |
| Did not complete | 35 | $19,600 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $639.89/mo.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Transylvania.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Transylvania appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 2.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 217 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
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 | $19,500 |
| Middle income | $20,905 |
| High income | $20,435 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $20,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,818 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Transylvania.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
With an unsubsidized loan, interest starts adding up the day the loan is disbursed, including during school. Subsidized loans, by contrast, do not accrue interest while you are enrolled at least half-time, which makes them the less expensive option when you qualify.
Did You Know?
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.