by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Clark State College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
For incoming students at Clark State Community College, 61% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, with a typical loan of $5,284 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,216, amounting to 94.8% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Across the full undergraduate body at Clark State Community College (freshmen included), 62% finance part of their studies with federal loans, averaging $5,227 a year. That amounts to 0.2% greater than the freshman federal average of $5,216.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $10,454 in two years and roughly $20,908 over four years. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 62% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,227 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,932 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $10,098,848 |
The median student at Clark State Community College borrows $6,899 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $6,899 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $14,490 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Clark State Community College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,959 |
| 25th percentile | $3,658 |
| 75th percentile | $14,750 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $27,595 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Clark State Community College.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at Clark State Community College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 404 | $11,051 |
| Completed (graduates) | 81 | $8,779 |
| Did not complete | 323 | $11,981 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $104.39/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Clark State Community College.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 222 | $8,689 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 182 | $14,566 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Clark State Community College.
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 Clark State Community College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 14.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1509 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
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 | $7,000 |
| Middle income | $7,078 |
| High income | $5,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $7,022 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,549 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $7,501 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at Clark State Community College.
The Difference Between 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.