by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend West Liberty 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 West Liberty University, 63% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, for an average of $10,493 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The average federally funded loan is $7,230. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit for a typical dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
For undergraduates overall at West Liberty University, 54% borrow through federal student loan programs, with a mean of $8,518 annually. This works out to 17.8% above the freshman federal average of $7,230.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $17,036 across two years and $34,072 across a four-year program. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 54% |
| Average federal loan per year | $8,518 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 879 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $7,487,165 |
The median student at West Liberty University borrows $16,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $16,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $23,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,750 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for West Liberty University.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,329 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $34,151 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at West Liberty University.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at West Liberty University.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 411 | $14,557 |
| Completed (graduates) | 216 | $16,248 |
| Did not complete | 195 | $13,588 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $193.21/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 West Liberty University.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 381 | $14,903 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 30 | $12,067 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. West Liberty University.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. Two-year cohort default-rate data for West Liberty University appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 14.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 689 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $14,750 |
| Middle income | $16,250 |
| High income | $17,250 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,958 |
| Continuing-generation students | $16,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $15,817 |
| Independent students | $16,966 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at West Liberty University.
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?
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.