by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Atlanta Technical College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Atlanta Area Tech, 42% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, averaging $6,610 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $6,610. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit for a typical dependent student. 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 Atlanta Area Tech, freshmen included, 46% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $6,869 per year. This is 3.9% above the $6,610 borrowed by freshmen.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $13,738 over two years and about $27,476 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 46% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,869 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,410 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $9,685,166 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Atlanta Area Tech carry a median federal debt of $6,334 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $6,334 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $9,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,797 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at Atlanta Area Tech.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,000 |
| 25th percentile | $3,500 |
| 75th percentile | $15,045 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $25,537 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Atlanta Area Tech.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Atlanta Area Tech.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 430 | $9,366 |
| Completed (graduates) | 61 | $12,000 |
| Did not complete | 369 | $9,087 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $142.69/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Atlanta Area Tech.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 202 | $8,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 228 | $10,183 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Atlanta Area Tech.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Atlanta Area Tech appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 0 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,334 |
| Middle income | $5,847 |
| High income | $4,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,334 |
| Continuing-generation students | $6,278 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $3,714 |
| Independent students | $6,740 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Atlanta Area Tech.
Subsidized vs. Unsubsidized Loans
With an unsubsidized loan, interest starts adding up the day the loan is disbursed, including during school. Subsidized loans, by contrast, do not accrue interest while you are enrolled at least half-time, which makes them the less expensive option when you qualify.
Did You Know?
Unlike most other debt, federal student loans generally survive bankruptcy — and unpaid balances can lead to wage garnishment — so borrow only what you truly need.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.