by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Columbus State Community College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Columbus State specifically, 30% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, borrowing on average $3,986 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $3,881, equal to roughly 70.6% of the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent student. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Columbus State, 28% rely on federal student loans toward their education, with a mean of $4,905 a year. It comes to 26.4% higher than the $3,881 freshmen take on.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $9,810 over two years and about $19,620 by the fourth year. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 28% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,905 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 4,745 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $23,274,748 |
The middle borrower at Columbus State owes $5,993 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,993 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $8,749 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,944 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Columbus State.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,750 |
| 25th percentile | $3,197 |
| 75th percentile | $14,307 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $25,375 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Columbus State.
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 Columbus State.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 2822 | $15,392 |
| Completed (graduates) | 101 | $14,774 |
| Did not complete | 2721 | $15,400 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $175.68/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Columbus State.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 2760 | $15,516 |
| No Stafford loan | 62 | $10,175 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 1057 | $11,266 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 1765 | $19,118 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Columbus State.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Columbus State is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 12.7% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 10141 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,783 |
| Middle income | $5,506 |
| High income | $5,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,249 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,963 |
| Independent students | $7,939 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Columbus State.
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.
Important to Remember
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.