by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Chippewa Valley Technical College: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at CVTC, 31% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, averaging $5,688 per student, private and federal loans combined.
The typical federal loan comes to $5,082, or about 92.4% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Looking at all undergraduates at CVTC, freshmen included, 32% borrow through federal student loan programs, for a typical $5,876 each per year. This works out to 15.6% above the $5,082 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $11,752 after two years and $23,504 after four. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 32% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,876 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,339 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $7,868,428 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at CVTC carry a median federal debt of $8,000 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $8,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $11,432 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for CVTC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,250 |
| 25th percentile | $4,051 |
| 75th percentile | $15,321 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $24,125 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at CVTC.
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 CVTC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 267 | $9,700 |
| Completed (graduates) | 123 | $9,930 |
| Did not complete | 144 | $9,446 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $118.08/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at CVTC.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 164 | $8,076 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 103 | $11,886 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. CVTC.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The federal two-year cohort default rate for CVTC appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 8.8% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1989 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $9,343 |
| Middle income | $7,944 |
| High income | $6,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $8,250 |
| Continuing-generation students | $6,667 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $6,196 |
| Independent students | $9,500 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at CVTC.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.