by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Washington College: 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.
At Washington College specifically, 40% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, with a typical loan of $10,059 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,173, amounting to 94.1% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Counting every undergraduate at Washington College, 49% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, averaging $6,081 in federal loans per year. That is 17.6% larger than the $5,173 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,162 over two years and about $24,324 over a four-year span. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 49% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,081 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 432 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,627,086 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Washington College carry a median federal debt of $21,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $21,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $26,956 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,548 |
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 Washington College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $10,750 |
| 75th percentile | $24,250 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $27,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Washington College.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Washington College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 176 | $49,309 |
| Completed (graduates) | 124 | $54,726 |
| Did not complete | 52 | $26,921 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $650.75/mo.
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Washington College.
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 Washington College appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 2.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 225 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $20,500 |
| Middle income | $19,500 |
| High income | $21,425 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $19,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $21,750 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Washington College.
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
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.