by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for University of Puerto Rico at Ponce— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At UPR Ponce, 4% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, borrowing on average $3,182 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federal loan is $3,182, or about 57.9% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
For undergraduates overall at UPR Ponce, 8% borrow through federal student loan programs, averaging $4,189 in federal loans per year. It comes to 31.6% larger than the first-year federal average of $3,182.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $8,378 over two years and about $16,756 by the fourth year. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 8% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,189 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 182 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $762,425 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at UPR Ponce carry a median federal debt of $5,500 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $5,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $2,600 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for UPR Ponce.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,300 |
| 25th percentile | $3,500 |
| 75th percentile | $7,100 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $11,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at UPR Ponce.
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at UPR Ponce.
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 UPR Ponce appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 20.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 5 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $5,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,500 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for UPR Ponce.
Subsidized vs. 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.
Important to Remember
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.