by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for University of Wisconsin-Green Bay: 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 UW - Green Bay, 45% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, averaging $6,136 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $4,769, which is 86.7% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
For undergraduates overall at UW - Green Bay, 43% take out federal student loans, borrowing on average $6,295 annually. This is 32.0% greater than the freshman federal average of $4,769.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $12,590 after two years and $25,180 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 43% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,295 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 2,672 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $16,820,304 |
The median student at UW - Green Bay borrows $11,250 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $11,250 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $18,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,250 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at UW - Green Bay.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,000 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $24,966 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,250 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at UW - Green Bay.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at UW - Green Bay.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 507 | $12,098 |
| Completed (graduates) | 265 | $13,480 |
| Did not complete | 242 | $11,305 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $160.29/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at UW - Green Bay.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 388 | $12,402 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 119 | $10,369 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at UW - Green Bay.
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 UW - Green Bay is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1521 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $11,000 |
| Middle income | $11,074 |
| High income | $12,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $11,374 |
| Continuing-generation students | $11,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $10,596 |
| Independent students | $12,500 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at UW - Green Bay.
Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Subsidized loans pause interest while you are in school; unsubsidized loans do not. That difference compounds over four years, so the type of loan you take matters as much as the amount.
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.