WGU’s 3-Year Student Loan Default Rate Drops to 4.6%

While the national student loan default rates ticked up again this year, the official FY 2014 cohort default rate for WGU Missouri and its parent university - Western Governors University – dropped again, to 4.6 percent. The U.S. Department of Education released official cohort default rates for all Title IV-eligible institutions this week, and online, nonprofit university WGU Missouri bucked the trend again, reducing its rate from 4.8 percent last year.

"At WGU Missouri, we focus on encouraging our students to borrow responsibly by providing them with the information they need to make smart, informed decisions about their student loans,” said WGU Missouri Chancellor Dr. Angie Besendorfer. “WGU’s affordable, flat-rate tuition of about $6,000 per year makes it possible for students to borrow less, and our degree programs produce graduates who find career success and increase their incomes.”

In 2013, WGU implemented its Responsible Borrowing Initiatives, a student education program aimed at ensuring that students borrow only what they need. Since then, the average borrowing per student per year has decreased by 41 percent—the average debt at graduation (for undergraduates who borrow) is about $16,000, less than half the national average. In addition, in a 2016 survey of graduates by Harris Poll Online, WGU graduates reported an average increase in salary of $19,100 within 4 years of graduation, compared to an average of $6,700 nationally.

About WGU Missouri

WGU Missouri is a competency-based, online university created to expand access to higher education for Missouri residents. The university offers more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the fields of business, K-12 teacher education, information technology, and health professions, including nursing. WGU Missouri faculty members serve as mentors, working one-on-one with students, offering guidance, support, and individualized instruction.

Established in 2013 through a partnership with nationally recognized Western Governors University, WGU Missouri is open to all qualified Missouri residents. The university is nonprofit and self-sustaining on flat-rate tuition of about $6,000 per year for most programs.

Degrees are granted under the accreditation of Western Governors University, which is accredited through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Nursing College programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE*), and the Health Informatics program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM).

More information is available at missouri.wgu.edu or by calling 855.948.8493.

*Western Governors University offers nursing programs that are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 5380, Washington DC 20036, 202-877-6791).