by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Brookdale Community College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Brookdale Community College, 9% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, borrowing on average $5,206 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
The average federal loan is $4,892, representing 88.9% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
Across the full undergraduate body at Brookdale Community College (freshmen included), 9% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $5,517 per year. That is 12.8% greater than the $4,892 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $11,034 across two years and $22,068 after four. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 9% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,517 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 711 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $3,922,679 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Brookdale Community College carry a median federal debt of $8,341 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $8,341 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $12,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Brookdale Community College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,800 |
| 25th percentile | $3,250 |
| 75th percentile | $11,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $18,000 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Brookdale Community College.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Brookdale Community College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1181 | $22,244 |
| Completed (graduates) | 234 | $15,000 |
| Did not complete | 947 | $25,076 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $178.37/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 Brookdale Community College.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1132 | $22,564 |
| No Stafford loan | 49 | $15,000 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 248 | $16,403 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 933 | $24,500 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Brookdale Community College.
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 Brookdale Community College appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 14.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1653 |
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 | $8,300 |
| High income | $8,000 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $8,750 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,500 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $7,350 |
| Independent students | $10,955 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Brookdale Community College.
The Difference Between Subsidized and 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.
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.