Stephen F Austin State University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid

For an average aid recipient, aid covers about 45% of the published cost; the offset against the sticker price is $11,531. The published cost is $25,791, and the average net price is $14,260, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships.

Across the reported income bands, average net prices are $10,318 in the lowest band, $11,023 in the next band, $13,100 in the middle band, $17,609 in the next-highest band, and $22,959 in the highest band. The $12,641 difference between the lowest and highest band averages shows a pricing pattern with lower net prices for lower-income families. The overall aid offset and the band pattern point in the same direction.

Against a published cost of attendance of $25,791 at Stephen F Austin State University, average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, differs across family-income bands. The average is $10,318 in the lowest family-income band, $11,023 in the lower-middle band, $13,100 in the middle band, $17,609 in the upper-middle band, and $22,959 in the highest family-income band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $12,641. Azimuth ranks the university #390 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 45% of the published cost, an average savings of $11,531 against the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, the average net price is $14,260.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $14,068, with the university's average net price $192 above that benchmark. Aid offsets a large portion of published cost, though the overall average sits above the comparable-institution median.

Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $23,409, and 86.6% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. The peer median federal debt for comparable institutions (same type and size) is $21,229, placing the university's median $2,180 above it.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $18,080. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $266 a month if repaid over ten years.

Federal borrowing is widespread at Stephen F Austin State University, and median debt at completion sits above the benchmark for comparable institutions. 86.6% of federal aid recipients take federal loans; among borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $23,409.

The peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size) is $21,229, making the university's median $2,180 above that figure. Parent borrowers are a separate population, with median Parent PLUS borrowing of $18,080.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 52% of graduates borrowed from any source, averaging $23,959 per borrower. The figures include 53% of graduates with federal loans, averaging $19,596 per federal borrower.

They also include 8% of graduates with private loans, averaging $26,720 per private borrower.

Stephen F Austin State University has a mixed return picture: the model’s expectation measure is stronger than its earnings-median position. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $55,013 four years after completion.

Azimuth places that earnings figure in the 33rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, offer a different measure.

Graduates earn about $1,849 more than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places that measure in the 62nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios based on the program mix put typical earnings at $55,013, with a downside scenario of $44,964 and an upside scenario of $70,259. Median federal debt at completion is $23,409, above the $21,229 peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,180.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $266 a month if repaid over ten years. Higher-than-expected earnings sit alongside debt above the peer midpoint.

The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $266 a month if repaid over ten years. Parent borrowers are a separate federal borrowing population, with median Parent PLUS borrowing of $18,080.

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.