by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Weber State University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At WSU specifically, 18% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $5,861 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,198, representing 94.5% 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.
Looking at all undergraduates at WSU, freshmen included, 19% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $6,663 per year. That is 28.2% greater than the $5,198 freshmen take on.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $13,326 by year two and around $26,652 over four years. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 19% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,663 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,000 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $19,990,347 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at WSU carry a median federal debt of $9,666 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $9,666 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $15,113 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,012 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for WSU.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,000 |
| 25th percentile | $3,990 |
| 75th percentile | $19,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $31,991 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at WSU.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at WSU.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 388 | $8,999 |
| Completed (graduates) | 154 | $7,520 |
| Did not complete | 234 | $9,864 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $89.42/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 WSU.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 378 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 10 | — |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 216 | $8,037 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 172 | $10,921 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for WSU.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for WSU follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 6.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 3387 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $10,442 |
| Middle income | $10,422 |
| High income | $8,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $10,167 |
| Continuing-generation students | $9,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $7,500 |
| Independent students | $12,416 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at WSU.
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
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.