Average Undergraduate Student Debt

Figuring out college finances can be an extremely stressful and complex undertaking for college-bound teens and their families. The FAFSA, the CSS Profile, Expected Family Contribution, Pell grants, work-study, need-based aid vs. merit aid, private loans vs Federal Stafford loans—it’s a lot to learn in a short amount of time. Therefore it can be advantageous to get a handle on the future tuition costs before even starting the college search process. One helpful indicator of which colleges meet student’s financial need is the average student loan debt held by graduates at the end of their four-year degree. For reference, student borrowers who graduated in 2020 accumulated nearly $30,000 in undergraduate debt, on average. The institutions on our list whose students have significantly lower average debt are typically more generous with need-based and merit-based aid packages.

The following table indicates the median undergraduate debt of an institution's graduates in 2020, the most recent year for which data was made available. Data was collected from institutions' Common Data Set (CDS) profiles for 2020-21.

Table updated October 2021

Institution% Borrowed (Graduating Students)Average Total Debt
Adelphi University63%$35,285
Agnes Scott College60%$33,575
Albion College73%$32,960
Alfred University79%$34,258
Allegheny College66%Not Reported
American University62%$34,455AU
Amherst College25%$21,772
Appalachian State University56%$22,705App State
Arizona State University45%$24,488ASU
Assumption College75%Not Reported
Auburn University39%$30,454
Augustana College72%$35,212
Austin College62%$33,863
Babson College37%$37,375
Ball State University70%$28,458
Bard College52%$29,270
Barnard College33%$24,438
Bates College33%$24,954
Baylor University50%$46,475
Belmont University49%$32,771
Beloit College57%$17,735
Bennington College59%$28,854
Bentley University59%$34,964
Berea College59%$1,937
Berry College63%$29,938
Binghamton University49%$26,787
Birmingham Southern College48%$31,593
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania83%$38,663
Boise State University57%$25,526
Boston College45%$23,247BC
Boston University44%$43,486BU
Bowdoin College25%$24,114
Bowling Green State University71%$30,627
Bradley University77%$33,529
Brandeis University45%$31,106
Brigham Young University-Provo22%$16,000BYU
Brown University32%$24,443
Bryant University59%$57,402
Bryn Mawr College56%$26,024
Bucknell University43%$30,300
Butler University56%$41,317
Cal Poly, Pomona47%$20,819
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo39%$22,933
California Institute of Technology28%$16,950Caltech
California State University, Fresno79%$20,217
California State University, Fullerton80%$6,457
California State University, Long Beach43%$18,427
Canisius College78%$35,231
Carleton College39%$20,025
Carnegie Mellon University38%$30,395CMU
Case Western Reserve University43%$31,201
Catholic University of America61%$40,893
Central Michigan University72%$31,962CMU
Centre College51%$24,921
Chapman University49%$26,935
Christopher Newport University57%$34,611
Citadel Military College of South Carolina64%$38,553
Claremont McKenna College29%$22,470CMC
Clark University61%$37,846
Clarkson University80%$28,000
Clemson University48%$33,488
Coastal Carolina University76%$38,887
Colby College24%$27,196
Colgate University26%$22,023
College of Charleston54%$30,339CofC
College of Saint Benedict77%$41,313
College of the Holy Cross57%$24,695
College of William and Mary34%$26,254
Colorado College28%$20,963CC
Colorado School of Mines50%$32,684
Colorado State University53%$25,781CSU
Columbia University19%$29,757
Connecticut College52%$36,826
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art29%$16,444
Cornell College67%$39,924
Cornell University39%$30,254
Creighton University55%$40,341
CUNY Bernard M Baruch College13%$10,429
CUNY Brooklyn College11%$14,725
CUNY City College1%$5,926
CUNY Hunter College10%$17,746
CUNY Lehman College21%$7,602
Dartmouth College37%$23,850
Davidson College30%$22,617
Denison University49%$31,681
DePaul University65%$30,330
DePauw University78%$25,667
Dickinson College58%$29,436
Drake University60%$32,016
Drew University61%$24,362
Drexel University60%$40,567
Duke University30%$24,219
Duquesne University54%$46,571
Earlham College52%$28,585
East Carolina University67%$29,184ECU
Eastern Connecticut State University74%$29,853
Eastern Kentucky University66%$26,368
Eckerd College60%$32,890
Elizabethtown College75%$45,494
Elon University33%$34,323
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical UniversityNot ReportedNot ReportedERAU
Emerson College59%$22,522
Emory University33%$26,331
Endicott College76%$51,145
Fairfield University66%$41,911
Fitchburg State University82%$27,156
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University82%$26,819
Florida Atlantic University47%$23,521FAU
Florida Gulf Coast University46%$27,077FGCU
Florida Institute of Technology47%$35,800FIT
Florida International University41%$18,975FIU
Florida Southern College87%$27,893
Florida State University44%$21,425FSU
Fordham University56%$32,796
Franklin and Marshall College55%$30,586F&M
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering36%$26,481
Furman University42%$28,366
George Mason University58%$31,797GMU
George Washington University44%$36,731GWU; GW
Georgetown College79%$26,396
Georgetown University36%$26,078
Georgia College50%$32,322
Georgia Institute of Technology35%$27,215Georgia Tech
Georgia Southern University65%$25,466GSU
Georgia State University64%$27,988GSU
Gettysburg College63%$34,237
Gonzaga University54%$28,426
Goucher College65%$28,446
Grinnell College50%$18,352
Grove City College53%$43,072
Gustavus Adolphus College84%$36,670
Hamilton College43%$20,125
Hampshire College68%$31,064
Hanover College67%$29,068
Harvard University20%$18,197
Harvey Mudd College48%$27,877HMC
Haverford College28%$14,200
Hendrix College43%$22,658
High Point University51%$52,350
Hillsdale College38%$33,210
Hobart William Smith Colleges72%$35,976HWS
Hofstra University61%Not Reported
Hope College63%$34,630
Howard University70%$35,086
Illinois Institute of Technology54%$29,176IIT
Illinois State University68%$30,588
Illinois Wesleyan University71%$35,560
Indiana University Bloomington43%$27,815IU; IUB
Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis62%$26,348IUPUI
Iowa State University57%$29,289ISU
Ithaca College66%$41,910
James Madison University50%$30,524JMU
John Carroll University72%$33,600
Johns Hopkins University40%$21,655JHU
Juniata College67%$35,508
Kalamazoo College59%$33,391
Kansas State University54%$27,434KSU; K-STATE
Kent State University at Kent71%$31,665
Kenyon College41%$23,151
Kettering University71%$46,644
Knox College76%$26,649
La Salle University79%Not Reported
Lafayette College40%$26,816
Lake Forest College66%$33,905
Lawrence University56%$29,489
Lehigh University47%$35,371
Lewis & Clark College45%$25,696
Linfield College-McMinnville Campus74%$34,827
Louisiana State University46%$26,429LSU
Loyola Marymount University44%$31,377LMU
Loyola University Chicago64%$33,898
Loyola University Maryland62%$39,177
Lycoming CollegeNot ReportedNot Reported
Macalester College56%$24,578
Manhattan College82%$34,468
Marist College62%$42,474
Marquette University55%$36,321
Marshall University66%$26,175
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts84%$29,096
Massachusetts Institute of Technology21%$22,735MIT
Massachusetts Maritime Academy98%$34,914MMA
McDaniel College73%$33,115
Mercer University58%$31,769
Mercyhurst University75%$39,300
Merrimack College79%$54,976
Messiah College72%$38,840
Miami University44%$29,331MU
Michigan State University50%$31,275MSU
Michigan Technological University67%$38,190
Middlebury College37%$22,146
Millersville University of Pennsylvania77%$32,593
Millsaps College65%$32,361
Milwaukee School of Engineering79%$36,787
Mississippi State University56%$25,339MSU
Missouri University of Science and Technology61%$29,005
Monmouth University79%$26,170
Montana State University50%$26,975
Montclair State University72%$43,608
Moravian College78%$34,155
Morehouse College85%$40,000
Mount Holyoke College55%$26,018MHC
Muhlenberg College63%$29,957
Murray State University52%$28,563
New College of Florida41%$19,066
New Jersey Institute of Technology55%$35,823NJIT
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology47%$21,955NMIT
New Mexico State University-Main Campus49%$20,501
New York Institute of Technology58%$26,084
New York University36%$28,426NYU
Niagara University65%$34,831
North Carolina State University48%$25,317NCSU; NC STATE
North Dakota State University-Main Campus67%$33,031
Northeastern University48%$33,570
Northern Arizona University55%$22,587NAU
Northern Michigan University70%$32,378
Northwestern University30%$35,219
Norwich University79%$38,017
Oakland University61%$27,002
Oberlin College45%$27,952
Occidental College55%$32,124OXY
Ohio State University47%$27,133OSU
Ohio University69%$28,747OU
Ohio Wesleyan University67%$35,187OWU
Oklahoma State University49%$26,086OSU
Old Dominion University73%$27,654
Oregon Institute of Technology61%$26,968
Oregon State University54%$27,027OSU
Pennsylvania State University - University Park53%$42,657PSU; PENN STATE
Pepperdine University47%$32,352
Pitzer College33%$21,032
Pomona College27%$17,819
Portland State University55%$23,835
Presbyterian College60%$32,476
Princeton University17%$9,623
Providence College64%$42,772
Purdue University41%$28,793
Quinnipiac University65%$36,639
Ramapo College of New Jersey64%$39,133
Randolph-Macon College70%$33,323
Reed College47%$28,286
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute60%$40,450RPI
Rhode Island School of Design43%$34,864RISD
Rhodes College47%$25,385
Rice University23%$24,188
Ripon College85%$39,970
Roanoke College73%$42,814
Rochester Institute of Technology75%$40,395RIT
Roger Williams University68%$47,043
Rollins College52%$29,995
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology54%$49,699
Rowan University71%$36,116
Rutgers University-Camden74%$31,377
Rutgers University-New Brunswick55%$33,865RU
Rutgers University-Newark59%$29,335
Sacred Heart University69%$46,843
Saint Anselm College80%$31,823
Saint Johns University72%$40,045SJU
Saint Joseph's University62%$42,747SJU
Saint Louis University57%$35,315
Saint Mary's College70%$31,660
Saint Mary's College of California72%$28,617
Saint Michael's College72%$38,465
Salem State University63%$30,440
Salisbury University62%$27,384
Salve Regina University83%$47,467
Sam Houston State University67%$27,373
Samford University27%$29,762
San Diego State University40%$20,300SDSU
San Francisco State University27%$6,167SFSU
San Jose State University43%$18,012SJSU
Santa Clara University34%$25,610SCU
Sarah Lawrence College57%$31,901
Scripps College33%$21,311
Seattle University70%$27,813
Seton Hall University65%$40,151
Siena College76%$38,991
Simmons University72%$34,973
Skidmore College34%$25,715
Smith College62%$22,162
Soka University of America54%$23,404
Sonoma State University58%$21,518
South Dakota State University74%$34,882
Southern Connecticut State University75%$42,601
Southern Methodist University31%$33,575SMU
Southwestern University54%$32,142
Spelman College70%$36,983
St Bonaventure University80%$34,569
St John's University-New York64%$30,831
St Lawrence University57%$34,003
St Olaf College64%$29,257
St. John's College (MD)78%$25,088
St. John's College (NM)69%$29,681
St. Mary's College of Maryland59%$27,212
Stanford University16%$24,337
State University of New York at New Paltz61%$26,403
Stetson University63%$33,575
Stevens Institute of Technology67%$51,251Stevens Tech
Stockton University67%$34,186
Stonehill College69%$45,038
Stony Brook University45%$24,026
Suffolk University72%$30,947
SUNY at Albany70%$28,492
SUNY at Fredonia91%$25,982
SUNY at Purchase College70%$24,137
SUNY College at Brockport81%$30,673
SUNY College at Geneseo57%$23,439
SUNY College at Oswego76%$29,602
SUNY College at Plattsburgh69%$29,059
SUNY College at Potsdam77%$29,946
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry63%$22,013
SUNY Cortland76%$31,504
SUNY Oneonta71%$4,573
Susquehanna University86%$43,366SU
Swarthmore College25%$28,628
Syracuse University52%$39,498SU
Temple University70%$39,913
Tennessee Technological University55%$24,025
Texas A & M University-College Station41%$24,621
Texas Christian University33%$49,287
Texas State University65%$25,170TCU
The College of New Jersey63%$38,370
The College of Wooster50%$31,283TCNJ
The University of Montana62%$27,308
The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga56%$24,067UTC
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville50%$26,517UTK
The University of Texas at Arlington47%$21,961UT Arlington
The University of Texas at Austin40%$22,149UT Austin
The University of Texas at Dallas34%$24,319UT Dallas
The University of the South38%$29,676Sewanee
Towson University59%$22,628
Transylvania University70%$31,393
Trinity College45%$32,743
Trinity University47%$44,432
Truman State University49%$24,054
Tufts University27%$25,065
Tulane University33%$34,529
Union College57%$36,408
United States Air Force AcademyNot ReportedNot ReportedUSAA
United States Coast Guard AcademyNot ReportedNot ReportedUSCGA
United States Merchant Marine AcademyNot ReportedNot Reported
United States Military AcademyNot ReportedNot ReportedUSMA
United States Naval AcademyNot ReportedNot ReportedUSNA
University at Buffalo59%$25,106
University of Akron Main Campus63%$28,616
University of Alabama46%$37,126
University of Alabama at Birmingham61%$29,606
University of Arizona44%$25,620UA
University of Arkansas48%$28,286
University of California, Berkeley29%$18,468UC Berkeley
University of California, Davis45%$17,736UC Davis
University of California, Irvine48%$18,399UC Irvine
University of California, Los Angeles40%$20,305UCLA
University of California, Merced67%$17,413UC Merced
University of California, Riverside63%$19,828UCR; UC Riverside
University of California, San Diego41%$19,969UCSD; UC San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara45%$19,034UCSSB; UC Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Cruz53%$21,189UCSC; UC Santa Cruz
University of Central Florida46%$22,381UCF
University of Chicago13%$26,560Uchicago
University of Cincinnati59%$26,535UC
University of Colorado Boulder38%$27,425CU Boulder
University of Connecticut54%$27,595UCONN
University of Dallas63%$30,427
University of Dayton56%$32,781
University of Delaware60%$39,705
University of Denver45%$31,488
University of Florida31%$19,688UFL
University of Georgia41%$22,777UGA
University of Houston45%$22,933UH
University of Idaho56%$22,972
University of Illinois at Chicago55%$22,788UIC
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign45%$24,766UIUC
University of Iowa50%$27,369
University of Kansas53%$27,011KU
University of Kentucky53%$35,005UKY
University of Louisiana at Lafayette55%$27,412
University of Louisville55%$25,324
University of Maine72%$35,036
University of Mary Washington55%$32,519
University of Maryland, Baltimore County45%$25,655UMC
University of Maryland, College Park40%$30,594UMD
University of Massachusetts Amherst64%$32,928UMass Amherst
University of Massachusetts Boston53%$25,054UMass Boston
University of Massachusetts Lowell73%$33,500UMass Lowell
University of Memphis87%$28,027
University of Miami33%$18,645UM
University of Michigan37%$26,600UMich
University of Michigan-Dearborn52%$23,785
University of Minnesota-Duluth72%$31,837
University of Minnesota-Morris63%$24,521UMM
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities54%$26,644UMN
University of Mississippi47%$34,013Ole Miss
University of Missouri-Columbia52%$28,457Mizzou
University of Nebraska-Lincoln55%$24,598UNL
University of Nevada-Las Vegas46%$22,062UNLV
University of Nevada-Reno48%$22,610UNR
University of New Hampshire75%$45,755UNH
University of New Mexico43%$20,628UNM
University of North Carolina at Asheville58%$22,908UNC Asheville; UNCA
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill36%$20,563UNC Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Charlotte63%$34,944UNCC: UNC Charlotte
University of North Carolina at Greensboro71%$30,367UNCG; UNC Greensboro
University of North Carolina Wilmington56%$26,038UNCW; UNC Wilmington
University of North Dakota62%$37,117UND
University of North Florida45%$18,099UNF
University of North Georgia80%$10,673UNG
University of North Texas59%$21,306UNT
University of Northern Colorado64%$23,881UNC
University of Northern Iowa66%$23,710
University of Notre Dame41%$28,696UND
University of Oklahoma46%$31,823OU
University of Oregon42%$26,060UO
University of Pennsylvania20%$23,876UPenn
University of Pittsburgh57%$38,465
University of Portland54%$32,800
University of Puget Sound54%$30,797
University of Redlands64%$38,288
University of Rhode Island71%$35,000URI
University of Richmond41%$28,826
University of Rochester52%$29,791URI
University of San Diego45%$28,946USD
University of San Francisco56%$33,226USF
University of Scranton70%$42,400
University of South Carolina53%$33,345USC
University of South Dakota74%$29,336USD
University of South Florida48%$21,128USF
University of Southern California33%$26,850USC
University of St Thomas59%$43,494
University of Tampa77%$33,192
University of the Pacific61%$28,481
University of Toledo71%$25,356
University of Tulsa39%$34,662
University of Utah45%$20,067
University of Vermont59%$35,578UVM
University of Virginia-Main Campus33%$25,194UVA
University of Washington32%$18,965UW
University of Washington-Bothell Campus39%$8,725UW Bothell
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire68%$26,479
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse65%$26,066
University of Wisconsin-Madison43%$27,889UW; UW Madison
University of Wyoming48%$23,510
Ursinus College72%$40,936
Valparaiso University62%$37,428
Vanderbilt University20%$22,808Vandy
Vassar College51%$22,721
Villanova University43%$38,243
Virginia Commonwealth University62%$33,031VCU
Virginia Military Institute62%$36,078VMI
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University47%$31,762Virginia Tech
Wabash College71%$34,233
Wagner CollegeNot ReportedNot Reported
Wake Forest University30%$36,016WFU
Warren Wilson College78%$24,036
Washington & Jefferson College80%$39,856
Washington and Lee University36%$27,010WLU
Washington College67%$37,121
Washington State University56%$26,479WSU
Washington University in St. Louis28%$19,649WashU
Wayne State University69%$22,470
Wellesley College45%$21,314
Wentworth Institute of Technology82%$46,022
Wesleyan University38%$23,876
West Chester University of Pennsylvania75%$37,100
West Virginia University61%$32,541WVU
Western Carolina University71%$27,807WCU
Western Michigan University73%$34,858WMU
Western Washington University48%$22,582
Westmont College60%$33,378
Wheaton College (IL)66%$30,663
Wheaton College (MA)66%$37,863
Whitman College34%$7,197
Whittier College76%$34,810
Whitworth University63%$29,219
Wichita State University57%$24,500
Widener UniversityNot ReportedNot Reported
Willamette University62%$29,009
Williams College33%$16,215
Winthrop University75%$33,312
Wofford College53%$32,352
Worcester Polytechnic Institute1%Not ReportedWPI
Xavier University52%$43,656
Yale University14%$14,884
Yeshiva University42%$23,666
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