by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend University of Florida: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At UF, 10% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, for an average of $6,988 each, across private and federal loan sources.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,007, which is 91.0% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at UF, 11% borrow through federal student loan programs, at an average of $6,224 each per year. This is 24.3% larger than the freshman federal average of $5,007.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $12,448 across two years and $24,896 after four. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 11% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,224 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,699 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $23,024,212 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at UF carry a median federal debt of $14,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $14,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $15,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,000 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at UF.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,624 |
| 25th percentile | $7,213 |
| 75th percentile | $24,134 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $30,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at UF.
The figures above count only the students own federal loans. Adding PLUS loans (borrowed by parents or graduate students) gives a fuller picture of total borrowing at UF.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 2886 | $18,236 |
| Completed (graduates) | 2045 | $18,837 |
| Did not complete | 841 | $16,375 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $223.99/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at UF.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 2806 | $18,446 |
| No Stafford loan | 80 | $13,083 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 2109 | $17,804 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 777 | $19,187 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for UF.
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 UF appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 6450 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,000 |
| Middle income | $13,397 |
| High income | $15,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $13,791 |
| Continuing-generation students | $14,327 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $14,000 |
| Independent students | $14,375 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at UF.
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.
Did You Know?
Federal student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy in all but the rarest cases, and the government can withhold part of your income or tax refund if you default.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.