by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez: 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.
Among first-year students at UPR Mayaguez, 4% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, for an average of $3,569 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $3,569, or about 64.9% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at UPR Mayaguez, 9% rely on federal student loans toward their education, at an average of $4,871 per year. It comes to 36.5% larger than the $3,569 freshmen take on.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $9,742 in two years and roughly $19,484 over four years. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 9% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,871 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 824 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,013,666 |
The middle borrower at UPR Mayaguez owes $8,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $8,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $8,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
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 UPR Mayaguez.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $4,500 |
| 75th percentile | $11,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $17,250 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at UPR Mayaguez.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at UPR Mayaguez.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for UPR Mayaguez appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 9.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 4312 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $8,000 |
| Middle income | $7,500 |
| High income | $7,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $8,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $8,000 |
| Independent students | $8,250 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for UPR Mayaguez.
Subsidized and 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?
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.