by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Yale 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.
For incoming students at Yale, 4% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $5,119 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,119, which is 93.1% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
Across the full undergraduate body at Yale (freshmen included), 5% rely on federal student loans toward their education, at an average of $6,022 in federal loans per year. It comes to 17.6% greater than the $5,119 freshmen take on.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $12,044 over two years and about $24,088 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 | 5% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,022 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 367 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,210,189 |
The middle borrower at Yale owes $11,648 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $11,648 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $12,975 |
| Students who withdrew | $7,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Yale.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,984 |
| 25th percentile | $6,500 |
| 75th percentile | $19,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $26,959 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Yale.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Yale.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 557 | $30,231 |
| Completed (graduates) | 420 | $29,769 |
| Did not complete | 137 | $34,664 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $353.99/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 Yale.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 518 | $30,115 |
| No Stafford loan | 39 | $33,154 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 403 | $30,231 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 154 | $30,500 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Yale.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Yale appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 1.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1426 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
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 | $8,294 |
| Middle income | $7,500 |
| High income | $12,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,790 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,598 |
| Independent students | $12,475 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Yale.
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.
Did You Know?
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.