by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for VanderCook College of Music— 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.
At VanderCook College of Music, 53% of first-year students take on loan debt, at roughly $9,211 each, across private and federal loan sources.
The average federally funded loan is $5,389, equal to roughly 98.0% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Across the full undergraduate body at VanderCook College of Music (freshmen included), 60% rely on federal student loans toward their education, averaging $6,964 annually. It comes to 29.2% larger than the freshman federal average of $5,389.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $13,928 by year two and around $27,856 by the fourth year. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 60% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,964 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 42 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $292,501 |
The middle borrower at VanderCook College of Music owes $27,000 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $27,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $27,000 |
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for VanderCook College of Music.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 25th percentile | $12,000 |
| 75th percentile | $31,000 |
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 VanderCook College of Music.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 24 | $44,186 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at VanderCook College of Music.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for VanderCook College of Music is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 12.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 41 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.