by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Ellsworth Community College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Ellsworth, 39% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, with a typical loan of $6,255 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,372, amounting to 97.7% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Ellsworth, 46% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, averaging $5,392 per year. That is 0.4% greater than the $5,372 freshmen take on.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $10,784 after two years and $21,568 by the fourth year. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 46% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,392 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 251 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,353,429 |
The median student at Ellsworth borrows $6,158 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $6,158 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $10,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Ellsworth.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $3,969 |
| 75th percentile | $11,611 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $15,900 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Ellsworth.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Ellsworth.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 124 | $7,324 |
| Completed (graduates) | 52 | $7,500 |
| Did not complete | 72 | $6,375 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $89.18/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Ellsworth.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 111 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 13 | — |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Ellsworth.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Ellsworth follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 15.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 388 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,800 |
| Middle income | $6,500 |
| High income | $5,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,125 |
| Continuing-generation students | $6,379 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $8,716 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Ellsworth.
Subsidized vs. Unsubsidized Loans
Subsidized loans pause interest while you are in school; unsubsidized loans do not. That difference compounds over four years, so the type of loan you take matters as much as the amount.
Worth Knowing
Federal student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy in all but the rarest cases, and the government can withhold part of your income or tax refund if you default.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.