by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend University of Nebraska at Omaha— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
Looking at the entering class at UNOMAHA, 28% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $5,894 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The typical federal loan comes to $4,846, representing 88.1% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Looking at all undergraduates at UNOMAHA, freshmen included, 27% borrow through federal student loan programs, at an average of $6,041 each per year. That amounts to 24.7% above the $4,846 freshmen take on.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $12,082 in two years and roughly $24,164 over four years. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 27% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,041 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,118 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $18,836,558 |
The middle borrower at UNOMAHA owes $12,750 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,750 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $19,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,990 |
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 UNOMAHA.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $23,949 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $32,643 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at UNOMAHA.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at UNOMAHA.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1942 | $13,990 |
| Completed (graduates) | 1018 | $15,945 |
| Did not complete | 924 | $12,355 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $189.6/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at UNOMAHA.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1905 | $14,000 |
| No Stafford loan | 37 | $10,000 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1520 | $14,097 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 422 | $13,368 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. UNOMAHA.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for UNOMAHA appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2887 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $12,308 |
| High income | $13,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,591 |
| Continuing-generation students | $13,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $12,000 |
| Independent students | $16,500 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at UNOMAHA.
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?
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.