by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Alexandria Technical & Community College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At ATCC specifically, 42% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, for an average of $6,798 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $5,333, which is 97.0% 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.
Looking at all undergraduates at ATCC, freshmen included, 38% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $6,487 each per year. This is 21.6% larger than the freshman federal average of $5,333.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $12,974 over two years and about $25,948 over a four-year span. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 38% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,487 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 540 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $3,503,110 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at ATCC carry a median federal debt of $8,251 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $8,251 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $12,000 |
| 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 ATCC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $4,911 |
| 75th percentile | $12,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $18,500 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at ATCC.
The figures above count only the students own federal loans. Adding PLUS loans (borrowed by parents or graduate students) gives a fuller picture of total borrowing at ATCC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 81 | $9,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 46 | $10,580 |
| Did not complete | 35 | $6,000 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $125.81/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at ATCC.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 51 | $7,553 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 30 | $9,830 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for ATCC.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for ATCC appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 10.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 723 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $9,500 |
| Middle income | $7,394 |
| High income | $8,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $8,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $9,500 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $6,500 |
| Independent students | $11,500 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at ATCC.
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.
Did You Know?
Declaring bankruptcy does not erase federal student loan debt. If you stop paying, the federal government can garnish a portion of your wages until the loans are repaid.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.