College Azimuth

Financial GPS

Financial GPS: can you afford the college you’re considering?

Financial GPS turns federal data into one plain question for each person in the decision. It starts with what a student would owe, what that would cost to repay over ten years, and how much of their pay above basic expenses it would take: the “slack” our framework is built on.

Tools

  • Can I, the student, afford it? Pick a school and field, set what you’d borrow each year, and see the payment, its share of your pay, and the most you can borrow and stay in Good. (Live.)
  • Can I, the parent, afford it? Parent PLUS under the new caps, against your household’s income. (Coming next.)
  • Can we, as a family, afford it? Who repays what, and what happens if the plan changes. (Coming after.)

Can I, the student, afford it?

Financial GPS · for students

What you’d owe when repayment starts, what it would cost to repay over ten years, and how much of your pay above basic expenses that takes.

A · University of California-Merced

Earnings, four years after graduating
Parents can take Parent PLUS

$3,349 a month left over. Loans take 6.2% of your pay above basic expenses: Excellent.

All fields at University of California-Merced: typical pay of $65,410 four years after graduating. Basic expenses: $22,590 a year (150% of the 2024 poverty line, one person).

10-year payment
$220/mo
Share of pay above basic expenses
6.2%
Left over each month, before tax
$3,349
Tier
Excellent

All federal: under the annual limits of $5,500 in year one, rising to $7,500.

You’d owe $19,334 when repayment starts: $19,334 federal.

To stay in Good, owe no more than $37,677 when repayment starts. You’d owe $19,334, inside it.

69% of University of California-Merced students finish within six years (Pell students: 69%). A student who leaves owes what they borrowed, without the degree’s pay. Typical debt when leaving without a degree: not available yet.

Add a second school

How repayment works

This tool measures every loan on one yardstick: the payment that clears it in ten years.

Federal loans made on or after July 1, 2026 repay on the new standard plan (10 to 25 years, depending on how much you owe) or on RAP, which is based on income.

IBR, PAYE and SAVE aren’t available for new loans, and a new federal loan moves older ones onto the new plans.

Loans made from July 2027 can’t be paused for unemployment or hardship; RAP’s $10 minimum is the fallback.

10-year payment at 2026-2027 federal rates (6.52% undergraduate, 1.057% fee): a yardstick, not a repayment plan. Federal loans treated as unsubsidized, with interest from each disbursement until repayment starts six months after graduating. Private loans deferred in school at the chosen rate, repaid over 10 years. Earnings: College Scorecard median four years after graduating; half earn less. Basic expenses: 150% of the 2024 federal poverty guideline for one person, a national figure that doesn’t reflect local costs. Sources: College Scorecard via Azimuth; Federal Student Aid; HHS.

How we measure

  • Every loan is measured on one yardstick: the payment that clears it in ten years at current federal rates. It’s a yardstick, not a repayment plan.
  • The share is that payment divided by pay above a basic allowance: 150% of the federal poverty guideline for one person, and 200% for a household of three, for parents.
  • Students: under 8% Excellent, 8–12% Good, 12–20% Concerning, over 20% High risk. Parents: under 6% Safe, 6–10% Caution, over 10% High pressure.

The rules year

These tools use 2026-2027 federal loan terms: 6.52% for undergraduate loans and 9.07% for Parent PLUS, with origination fees of 1.057% and 4.228%.

Federal loans made on or after July 1, 2026 repay on the new standard plan or RAP. IBR, PAYE and SAVE aren’t available for them.

New Parent PLUS loans are capped at $20,000 a year and $65,000 per student, with the standard plan only.

Limits

  • Earnings are medians, so half of graduates earn less.
  • The allowance is a national figure, not what it costs to live where you’ll live. Local budgets are coming.
  • Private loan rates are assumptions until we have lender data.
  • This is a planning tool, not financial advice or a prediction.

Sources