by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Youngstown State University— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Looking at the entering class at Youngstown State University, 42% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, with a typical loan of $6,155 each, across private and federal loan sources.
Federal loans alone average $5,244, which is 95.3% 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.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Youngstown State University, 43% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, averaging $6,131 in federal loans per year. This is 16.9% above the freshman federal average of $5,244.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $12,262 across two years and $24,524 across a four-year program. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 43% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,131 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 3,134 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $19,214,458 |
The middle borrower at Youngstown State University owes $15,750 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $15,750 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $24,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,250 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Youngstown State University.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,751 |
| 25th percentile | $6,002 |
| 75th percentile | $31,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $46,350 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Youngstown State University.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Youngstown State University.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1507 | $14,270 |
| Completed (graduates) | 769 | $16,900 |
| Did not complete | 738 | $12,096 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $200.96/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 Youngstown State University.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1466 | $14,455 |
| No Stafford loan | 41 | $10,237 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1370 | $14,275 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 137 | $14,255 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Youngstown State University.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Youngstown State University is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 14.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 4596 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $15,000 |
| Middle income | $16,235 |
| High income | $15,750 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,750 |
| Continuing-generation students | $15,311 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $15,000 |
| Independent students | $18,750 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Youngstown State University.
The Difference Between 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.
Did You Know?
Declaring bankruptcy does not erase federal student loan debt. If you stop paying, the federal government can garnish a portion of your wages until the loans are repaid.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.