by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Broward College: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
For incoming students at BC, 10% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, with a typical loan of $4,079 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
Federal loans alone average $3,374, or about 61.3% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at BC, 12% take out federal student loans, for a typical $4,079 in federal loans per year. That amounts to 20.9% higher than the first-year federal average of $3,374.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $8,158 by year two and around $16,316 by the fourth year. This assumes steady federal borrowing and leaves out private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 12% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,079 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 2,775 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $11,319,144 |
The middle borrower at BC owes $4,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $4,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $7,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $3,500 |
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 BC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,748 |
| 25th percentile | $2,250 |
| 75th percentile | $6,562 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $11,250 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at BC.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for BC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1240 | $8,673 |
| Completed (graduates) | 159 | $9,400 |
| Did not complete | 1081 | $8,625 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $111.78/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at BC.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1217 | $8,701 |
| No Stafford loan | 23 | $6,111 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 506 | $8,259 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 734 | $8,789 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. BC.
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 BC follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 8.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 2916 |
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.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $4,500 |
| Middle income | $4,373 |
| High income | $3,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $4,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $4,500 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $3,500 |
| Independent students | $5,250 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at BC.
The Difference Between Subsidized and 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?
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.