Cost & financial aid brief
Eastern Illinois University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does Eastern Illinois University cost after financial aid?
Aid reaches furthest among families in the lower income bands, although the lowest band is not the least expensive of the five. For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 53% of the published cost.
The sticker-to-net gap described above is an average across aid recipients, rather than a quoted price for any one family. Across the income bands, prices first dip and then increase through the higher bands.
That ordering shows aid targeting toward lower-income families as a pattern in average prices, not as a guarantee of a particular package. The difference between the lowest and highest bands also means family income can materially shape the listed net price.
Affordability is Eastern Illinois University's strongest measured pillar, with a published cost of attendance of $26,996. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $9,828 for the lowest family-income band, $8,619 for the lower-middle band, $11,412 for the middle band, $15,665 for the upper-middle band, and $21,027 for the highest band.
The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $11,199, and Azimuth ranks the university #272 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 53% of the published cost and offsets $14,210, leaving an average net price across aid recipients of $12,786.
That average is $1,282 below the peer median net price of $14,068 for comparable institutions (same type and size), pointing in the same direction as the affordability ranking. Published in-state tuition and fees are $13,679, while out-of-state tuition and fees are $16,217.
Borrowing is common among undergraduates, even though the typical federal debt figure is close to that of comparable institutions. Median federal student loan debt at completion is $21,500; this is $271 above the peer median of $21,229 for comparable institutions (same type and size).
Among federal aid recipients, 87.8% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $17,781.
The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
Federal borrowing is common at Eastern Illinois University, and typical completion debt sits slightly above the comparable-school midpoint. Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $21,500.
Federal loans are used by 87.8% of federal aid recipients. Comparable institutions (same type and size) have a peer median federal debt of $21,229, placing Eastern Illinois $271 above that figure.
For the separate population of parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $17,781. The borrowing pattern is close to the peer midpoint, but it is modestly higher there.
Affordability is Eastern Illinois University’s stronger pillar, but the return figures point to a less favorable earnings picture. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $53,620 four years after completion.
Azimuth places that earnings figure in the 28th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $8,394 less than expects for similar students.
Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, falls in the 24th percentile. Earnings scenarios range from $45,526 in the downside case to $64,506 in the upside case, with $53,620 as the typical scenario.
Median federal student loan debt at completion is $21,500, $271 above the $21,229 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years.
Median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years. Parent PLUS borrowers, a separate parent-borrower population, had median borrowing of $17,781.
Repayment figures are in the Financial GPS card below. Borrowing populations and model assumptions.
Parent loans: what can the family afford?
How Parent PLUS borrowing affects families
- Median Parent PLUS debt
- $17,781
- Estimated parent payment
- $226/mo
| Income | Risk level |
|---|---|
| $35,000 | High pressure |
| $50,000 | High pressure |
| $75,000 | High pressure |
| $100,000 | Safe |
| $150,000 | Safe |
| $200,000 | Safe |
The model holds the parent balance fixed and varies parent income. Read the assumptions and limits.
Student and parent loans: the monthly payments
Financial GPS
What does repayment look like?
- Institution median student debt
- $21,500
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $17,781
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $244/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $226/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $470/mo
Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.
Student payment as a share of available income
At median graduate earnings of $53,620, with a $22,590 annual allowance for basic expenses:
9.4% of income above the allowance · Good
- Excellent Under 8%
- Good 8–under 12% · selected scenario
- Concerning 12–20%
- High risk Over 20%
How this estimate works
These are modeled earnings scenarios, not observed earnings percentiles. Annual student payments ÷ (earnings − basic-expense allowance). The starting allowance, $22,590, uses the published framework’s 2024 baseline; it is not a current local living-cost estimate. Change it for your budget, including taxes and other obligations. This combines school-level figures for illustration, not a typical individual’s budget or an official school rating. Parent PLUS is separate.
Payment assumptions
Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.
Data & methodology
Sources and reporting periods: methodology.
Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.
Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.
Figure notes link to sources and limitations. About College Azimuth.
Net price and borrowing. The 2023–24 income-band averages include living costs and cover eligible first-time, full-time aid recipients; public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. They are not individual aid offers. Peer matching supplies overall net prices, not matched income-band averages. College Scorecard data and documentation.
A personal student-risk assessment also needs your major and borrowing plan; these school-level illustrations do not assign you a personal risk zone.
Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates. Private-loan figures from the Common Data Set are separate from these federal repayment illustrations.