Pell Grant recipients were slower over all in paying back their student loans than were students who did not receive Pell Grants. But at a dozen four-year colleges, more than 90 percent of Pell Grant recipients who started repayment in the 2010 or 2011 fiscal years had paid down at least $1 of the principal five years later. Median five-year repayment rates for Pell Grant recipients by sector were well below those of non-Pell recipients, who presumably came from higher-income families.
4-year public institutions
Highest 5-year repayment rates for Pell Grant recipients
| 1. | U. of Nebraska Medical Center | 90.2% | 93.1% | $16,500 | $15,000 | 24.7% |
| 2. | Augusta U. | 87.9% | 87.6% | $11,966 | $9,501 | 43.5% |
| 3. | U. of Texas Health Science Center at Houston | 86.3% | 87.4% | $14,000 | $13,533 | 40.8% |
| 4. | Colorado School of Mines | 86.3% | 90.9% | $26,200 | $19,500 | 16.9% |
| 5. | U. of Vermont | 84.4% | 89.9% | $20,500 | $15,099 | 17.4% |
| 6. | California Polytechnic State U. at San Luis Obispo | 84.2% | 91.4% | $17,484 | $15,000 | 19.4% |
| 7. | Maine Maritime Academy | 84.2% | 90.4% | $27,000 | $26,000 | 29.4% |
| 8. | Louisiana State U. Health Sciences Center-New Orleans | 83.9% | 89.0% | $15,938 | $15,250 | 22.8% |
| 9. | U. of Wisconsin at Madison | 83.0% | 89.6% | $22,696 | $19,200 | 14.5% |
| 10. | U. of California at San Diego | 82.8% | 89.8% | $18,184 | $15,000 | 38.4% |
| 11. | Georgia Institute of Technology | 82.3% | 91.1% | $23,000 | $20,250 | 17.0% |
| 12. | New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology | 82.1% | 81.2% | $11,143 | $8,750 | 30.2% |
| 13. | U. of Wisconsin at La Crosse | 82.0% | 88.7% | $19,500 | $17,545 | 22.0% |
| 14. | U. of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio | 82.0% | 86.8% | $16,000 | $7,500 | 32.6% |
| 15. | College of William & Mary | 81.7% | 90.5% | $18,750 | $18,292 | 11.1% |
| 16. | Virginia Military Institute | 81.7% | 88.8% | $23,500 | $19,500 | 14.1% |
| 17. | Oregon Health & Science U. | 81.4% | 90.4% | $21,556 | $7,750 | 34.0% |
| 18. | U. of California at Davis | 81.4% | 85.5% | $13,380 | $12,000 | 41.2% |
| 19. | James Madison U. | 81.2% | 91.8% | $19,006 | $17,500 | 14.6% |
| 20. | U. of Maryland at Baltimore | 81.0% | 86.0% | $15,000 | $14,625 | 20.6% |
Lowest 5-year repayment rates for Pell Grant recipients
| 660. | Central State U. | 18.5% | 25.4% | $18,339 | $9,500 | 73.3% |
| 659. | Atlanta Metropolitan State College | 20.9% | 31.7% | $4,275 | $4,500 | 74.0% |
| 658. | Savannah State U. | 22.3% | 32.8% | $15,000 | $9,500 | 74.5% |
| 657. | Southern U. at New Orleans | 23.1% | 27.5% | $13,500 | $8,875 | 60.5% |
| 656. | North Carolina Central U. | 24.0% | 39.7% | $25,546 | $16,577 | 65.7% |
| | Median for 660 public 4-year colleges | 58.0% | 73.9% | $16,119 | $12,000 | 37.7% |
4-year private nonprofit institutions
Highest 5-year repayment rates for Pell Grant recipients
| 1. | Wheaton College (Ill.) | 93.4% | 95.9% | $22,500 | $19,500 | 19.9% |
| 2. | Babson College | 92.8% | 94.8% | $25,866 | $24,487 | 16.3% |
| 3. | U. of Notre Dame | 92.0% | 95.1% | $20,094 | $21,074 | 10.5% |
| 4. | Connecticut College | 91.4% | 94.3% | $19,840 | $21,500 | 14.4% |
| 5. | Barnard College | 91.4% | 96.4% | $18,250 | $15,000 | 18.2% |
| 6. | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 91.1% | 94.1% | $31,625 | $25,008 | 16.0% |
| 7. | Dordt College | 90.8% | 93.2% | $19,500 | $18,875 | 27.0% |
| 8. | College of Saint Benedict | 90.7% | 95.9% | $23,250 | $23,250 | 24.0% |
| 9. | Occidental College | 90.5% | 93.7% | $22,492 | $20,644 | 20.2% |
| 10. | Macalester College | 90.4% | 90.7% | $22,664 | $20,500 | 16.6% |
| 11. | Bucknell U. | 90.1% | 95.1% | $26,315 | $26,000 | 10.9% |
| 12. | Bentley U. | 89.9% | 97.1% | $27,000 | $24,000 | 15.6% |
| 13. | Trinity U. | 89.7% | 93.9% | $27,000 | $17,611 | 16.9% |
| 14. | Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences | 89.1% | 92.6% | $26,250 | $22,313 | 24.1% |
| 15. | Carnegie Mellon U. | 89.0% | 95.2% | $27,000 | $23,250 | 13.0% |
| 16. | Carleton College | 89.0% | 93.3% | $19,992 | $18,000 | 13.1% |
| 17. | College of the Holy Cross | 88.8% | 96.4% | $27,000 | $27,000 | 16.3% |
| 18. | Vassar College | 88.5% | 93.9% | $10,925 | $17,652 | 23.8% |
| 19. | Boston College | 88.3% | 94.3% | $19,000 | $18,884 | 12.5% |
| 19. | Oberlin College | 88.3% | 90.9% | $24,087 | $24,000 | 9.6% |
Lowest 5-year repayment rates for Pell Grant recipients
| 1,125. | Virginia U. of Lynchburg | 11.6% | 36.7% | $11,513 | $8,055 | 98.4% |
| 1,124. | Martin U. | 12.9% | 17.0% | — | — | 86.5% |
| 1,123. | Benedict College | 14.8% | 24.2% | $20,000 | $9,500 | 82.6% |
| 1,122. | Livingstone College | 15.0% | 19.0% | $14,750 | $9,500 | 84.6% |
| 1,121. | Everest U. (10 campuses in Florida)* | 15.0% | 30.6% | $9,500 | $9,290 | 75.8% |
| | Median for 1,125 private nonprofit colleges | 61.2% | 77.8% | $20,000 | $15,000 | 36.9% |
* The median debt levels of the 10 campuses of Everest University were reported collectively. The percentage of Pell students is given as the median percentage for the 10 campuses
Note: Federal Pell Grants are awarded to students with exceptional financial need. The five-year repayment rate measures the percentage of student-loan borrowers who have not defaulted and have repaid at least $1 of their original principal balance after five years in repayment. Figures are for the pooled cohorts who entered repayment in 2010 and 2011, measured in the 2015 and 2016 fiscal years. Median cumulative debt is for the cohorts who entered repayment in the 2015 and 2016 fiscal years. Loans that were deferred at the time of measurement because students were continuing their studies or serving in the military are excluded from the calculation, as are loans discharged because of death or disability. The percentage of students receiving Pell Grants is for the 2014-15 academic year. Percentages are rounded, but institutions were ranked before rounding. Tied institutions are listed alphabetically. A dash indicates that figures were suppressed because of privacy concerns. Questions or comments on the Chronicle List should be sent to Ruth Hammond.
Source: Chronicle analysis of U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data
