COOKEVILLE – According to Student Loan Report (studentloans.net), Tennessee Tech is one of the best schools in the nation when it comes to successful student loan repayments.
The Cookeville university ranks 16th in the nation and first in Tennessee among public universities in a Student Debt Repayment Success Indicator (SDRSI) study. When private schools were considered, Tech placed 34th overall and second in the state
“This study reflects accurately the students that choose to attend our institution and the importance our office devotes to indebtedness,” Lester McKenzie, Tech director of financial aid, said. “This doesn’t just cast a positive light on the financial aid office, but the admissions office for getting the right fit students, the faculty and staff for their devotion to the holistic student and many other offices such as career services, disability services, records, and the bursar’s office.”
The SDRSI study factored in the average student loan debt per borrower, the average early career pay and the default rate.
“The metrics it uses are good parameters for establishing a threshold that combines not only the student debt load, used by many other surveys and rankings, but also the beginning pay of graduates and our default rate,” McKenzie said. “Use of these three indicators gives students who are making a decision whether to attend, or even more implicitly whether to borrow federal loan dollars.”
The study showed Tech’s early career pay at $53,800 with the debt per borrower at $19,363 and the default rate at 6.17 percent for an SDRSI rating of 2.61.
For more information on the study, visit https://studentloans.net/student-debt-repayment-success-indicator-2017/#overall.
| State Rank | School Name | School Type | Early Career Pay | Debt Per Borrower | Default Rate | SDRSI | Overall Rank |
| 1 | Vanderbilt University | Private | $57,900 | $21,506 | 1.24% | 2.66 | 31 |
| 2 | Tennessee Technological University | Public | $53,800 | $19,363 | 6.17% | 2.61 | 34 |
| 3 | University of Tennessee | Public | $46,500 | $24,272 | 4.80% | 1.82 | 163 |
| 4 | University of Tennessee – Chattanooga | Public | $40,900 | $23,009 | 7.34% | 1.65 | 241 |
| 5 | Christian Brothers University | Private | $47,800 | $27,892 | 7.24% | 1.59 | 270 |
| 6 | University of Memphis | Public | $44,500 | $25,947 | 8.98% | 1.56 | 291 |
| 7 | Rhodes College | Private | $44,200 | $28,008 | 2.15% | 1.54 | 300 |
| 8 | Middle Tennessee State University | Public | $42,100 | $25,352 | 9.62% | 1.50 | 326 |
| 9 | King University | Private | $35,300 | $22,607 | 7.75% | 1.44 | 379 |
| 10 | Belmont University | Private | $40,800 | $28,477 | 2.08% | 1.40 | 408 |
| 11 | Trevecca Nazarene University | Private | $44,800 | $30,667 | 4.38% | 1.40 | 414 |
| 12 | Austin Peay State University | Public | $39,200 | $25,495 | 12.25% | 1.35 | 466 |
| 13 | Lipscomb University | Private | $42,000 | $30,658 | 2.65% | 1.33 | 483 |
| 14 | Union University | Private | $42,200 | $31,784 | 3.56% | 1.28 | 525 |
| 15 | East Tennessee State University | Public | $40,100 | $27,866 | 11.17% | 1.28 | 529 |
| 16 | University of Tennessee – Martin | Public | $40,100 | $28,701 | 10.02% | 1.26 | 548 |
| 17 | Southern Adventist University | Private | $43,600 | $33,320 | 5.29% | 1.24 | 566 |
| 18 | LeMoyne-Owen College | Private | $38,200 | $27,441 | 19.54% | 1.12 | 659 |
| 19 | Tennessee State University | Public | $43,600 | $35,214 | 12.76% | 1.08 | 678 |
| 20 | Tusculum College | Private | $36,000 | $31,806 | 10.40% | 1.01 | 704 |
