by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Viterbo University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Viterbo, 67% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, at roughly $7,102 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,202, amounting to 94.6% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Viterbo, 60% rely on federal student loans toward their education, borrowing on average $7,142 each per year. That is 37.3% higher than the $5,202 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $14,284 over two years and about $28,568 across a four-year program. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 60% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,142 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 839 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,992,418 |
The median student at Viterbo borrows $19,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $19,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $25,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,430 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Viterbo.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,500 |
| 25th percentile | $9,000 |
| 75th percentile | $28,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Viterbo.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Viterbo.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 465 | $19,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 301 | $21,560 |
| Did not complete | 164 | $12,952 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $256.37/mo.
Stafford loans are the federal direct-loan program most undergraduates use. The breakdown below separates borrowers who used Stafford loans from those who did not at Viterbo.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 407 | $20,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 58 | $11,288 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Viterbo.
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 Viterbo appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 3.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 752 |
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 | $18,971 |
| Middle income | $18,325 |
| High income | $21,159 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $20,310 |
| Continuing-generation students | $18,625 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $19,500 |
| Independent students | $21,757 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Viterbo.
Subsidized and 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
Declaring bankruptcy does not erase federal student loan debt. If you stop paying, the federal government can garnish a portion of your wages until the loans are repaid.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.