by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Wheaton 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 Wheaton College Illinois, 49% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, with a typical loan of $7,007 per student, private and federal loans combined.
Federal loans alone average $5,215, amounting to 94.8% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Looking at all undergraduates at Wheaton College Illinois, freshmen included, 44% borrow through federal student loan programs, at an average of $6,307 a year. This is 20.9% greater than the $5,215 typical freshmen borrow.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $12,614 after two years and $25,228 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 | 44% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,307 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 918 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,789,946 |
The median student at Wheaton College Illinois borrows $20,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $20,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $23,250 |
| Students who withdrew | $10,000 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 Wheaton College Illinois.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $12,048 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $30,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Wheaton College Illinois.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Wheaton College Illinois.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 252 | $32,336 |
| Completed (graduates) | 169 | $35,000 |
| Did not complete | 83 | $25,200 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $416.19/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Wheaton College Illinois.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 219 | $33,505 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 33 | $30,200 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Wheaton College Illinois.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Wheaton College Illinois is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 1.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 491 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $21,500 |
| Middle income | $21,000 |
| High income | $19,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $21,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,500 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Wheaton College Illinois.
Subsidized vs. 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.
Important to Remember
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.