by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Western Colorado University: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At Western, 52% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, averaging $6,397 per student, private and federal loans combined.
Federal loans alone average $4,601, which is 83.7% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Counting every undergraduate at Western, 42% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, with a mean of $8,322 per year. That amounts to 80.9% greater than the $4,601 freshmen take on.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $16,644 by year two and around $33,288 by the fourth year. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 42% |
| Average federal loan per year | $8,322 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 702 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,841,765 |
The median student at Western borrows $12,000 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $20,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,250 |
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 Western.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,250 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $22,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $30,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Western.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Western.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 441 | $20,075 |
| Completed (graduates) | 182 | $28,288 |
| Did not complete | 259 | $16,337 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $336.37/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Western.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 415 | $20,490 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 26 | $16,667 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Western.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Western follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 4.8% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 496 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,500 |
| Middle income | $14,250 |
| High income | $11,250 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,785 |
| Independent students | $16,892 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Western.
Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Unsubsidized federal student loans accrue interest every month — even while you are still enrolled. Unless you pay that interest as it builds, the balance you owe at graduation can be noticeably higher than the amount you originally borrowed.
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.