by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for University of South Carolina-Union— 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.
Among first-year students at USC Union, 18% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, borrowing on average $5,858 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,001, or about 90.9% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
Looking at all undergraduates at USC Union, freshmen included, 33% finance part of their studies with federal loans, borrowing on average $5,626 a year. That is 12.5% larger than the $5,001 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $11,252 in two years and roughly $22,504 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 | 33% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,626 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 87 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $489,439 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at USC Union carry a median federal debt of $5,500 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $11,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for USC Union.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,066 |
| 75th percentile | $11,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $22,928 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at USC Union.
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 USC Union.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 33 | $12,198 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at USC Union.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for USC Union appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 16.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 174 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
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 | $5,500 |
| Middle income | $6,391 |
| High income | $6,250 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,500 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $9,498 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at USC Union.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.