by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend University of California-Merced, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at UC Merced, 30% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, for an average of $5,215 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federally funded loan is $4,673, amounting to 85.0% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Looking at all undergraduates at UC Merced, freshmen included, 29% rely on federal student loans toward their education, at an average of $5,399 each per year. This works out to 15.5% larger than the first-year federal average of $4,673.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $10,798 in two years and roughly $21,596 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 | 29% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,399 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 2,390 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $12,902,416 |
The median student at UC Merced borrows $12,750 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,750 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $16,144 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,750 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 UC Merced.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,500 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $24,250 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $29,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at UC Merced.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at UC Merced.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 640 | $15,492 |
| Completed (graduates) | 444 | $18,376 |
| Did not complete | 196 | $9,500 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $218.51/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at UC Merced.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 614 | $15,581 |
| No Stafford loan | 26 | $14,725 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 599 | $15,405 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 41 | $15,877 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. UC Merced.
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 UC Merced appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 356 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
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 | $12,270 |
| Middle income | $12,000 |
| High income | $15,991 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,250 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $12,750 |
| Independent students | $13,785 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for UC Merced.
Subsidized vs. 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.
Important to Remember
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.