by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend University of Nevada-Reno: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At UNR, 33% of first-year students take on loan debt, borrowing on average $6,890 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federal loan is $4,965, amounting to 90.3% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at UNR, 27% rely on federal student loans toward their education, at an average of $6,118 each per year. This works out to 23.2% above the first-year federal average of $4,965.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $12,236 over two years and about $24,472 over four years. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 27% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,118 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 4,303 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $26,323,741 |
The middle borrower at UNR owes $13,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $13,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $18,922 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,500 |
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 UNR.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $23,046 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at UNR.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for UNR.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1759 | $22,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 1024 | $26,150 |
| Did not complete | 735 | $18,000 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $310.95/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at UNR.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1693 | $22,000 |
| No Stafford loan | 66 | $22,704 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1435 | $22,480 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 324 | $20,261 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at UNR.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. Two-year cohort default-rate data for UNR follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2194 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,000 |
| Middle income | $12,500 |
| High income | $13,314 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,863 |
| Continuing-generation students | $13,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $12,250 |
| Independent students | $16,245 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at UNR.
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.
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.