by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Muskegon 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 Muskegon Community College, 4% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, averaging $4,095 per student, private and federal loans combined.
On the federal side, the average loan is $4,095, representing 74.5% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Looking at all undergraduates at Muskegon Community College, freshmen included, 7% take out federal student loans, for a typical $4,502 per year. This works out to 9.9% above the $4,095 freshmen take on.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $9,004 in two years and roughly $18,008 across a four-year program. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 7% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,502 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 199 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $895,987 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Muskegon Community College carry a median federal debt of $5,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $9,125 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,500 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Muskegon Community College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,497 |
| 25th percentile | $2,500 |
| 75th percentile | $8,893 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $15,235 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Muskegon Community College.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Muskegon Community College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 206 | $11,057 |
| Completed (graduates) | 43 | $10,624 |
| Did not complete | 163 | $11,227 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $126.33/mo.
Stafford loans are the federal direct-loan program most undergraduates use. The breakdown below separates borrowers who used Stafford loans from those who did not at Muskegon Community College.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 58 | $7,975 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 148 | $11,628 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Muskegon Community College.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Muskegon Community College follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 11.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 612 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $5,047 |
| Middle income | $5,000 |
| High income | $5,460 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,253 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,500 |
| Independent students | $6,316 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Muskegon Community College.
The Difference Between Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans
Unsubsidized federal student loans accrue interest every month — even while you are still enrolled. Unless you pay that interest as it builds, the balance you owe at graduation can be noticeably higher than the amount you originally borrowed.
Important to Remember
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.