by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Contra Costa 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.
Looking at the entering class at CCC, 1% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, at roughly $4,454 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
Federal loans alone average $4,454, representing 81.0% 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.
Across the full undergraduate body at CCC (freshmen included), 2% borrow through federal student loan programs, borrowing on average $7,679 each per year. This is 72.4% greater than the first-year federal average of $4,454.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $15,358 by year two and around $30,716 by the fourth year. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 2% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,679 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 83 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $637,327 |
The middle borrower at CCC owes $4,750 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $4,750 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,750 |
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 CCC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,750 |
| 25th percentile | $2,625 |
| 75th percentile | $10,350 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $17,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at CCC.
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 CCC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 502 | $14,549 |
| Completed (graduates) | 28 | $15,940 |
| Did not complete | 474 | $14,418 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $189.54/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 CCC.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 482 | $14,549 |
| No Stafford loan | 20 | $17,091 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 13 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 489 | — |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for CCC.
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 CCC is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 7.9% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 88 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $4,750 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $4,750 |
| Continuing-generation students | $10,500 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,000 |
| Independent students | $5,250 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at CCC.
Subsidized vs. 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.
Worth Knowing
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.