by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend De Anza College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
For incoming students at De Anza College, 3% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, for an average of $4,618 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $4,363, or about 79.3% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
For undergraduates overall at De Anza College, 3% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, at an average of $5,584 per year. This works out to 28.0% greater than the $4,363 typical freshmen borrow.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $11,168 across two years and $22,336 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 | 3% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,584 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 436 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,434,589 |
The middle borrower at De Anza College owes $6,495 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $6,495 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $5,625 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,500 |
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 De Anza College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,719 |
| 25th percentile | $3,167 |
| 75th percentile | $10,832 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $19,822 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at De Anza College.
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 De Anza College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 1078 | $17,966 |
| Completed (graduates) | 60 | $26,333 |
| Did not complete | 1018 | $17,541 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $313.13/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at De Anza College.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 1026 | $18,315 |
| No Stafford loan | 52 | $13,565 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 65 | $15,680 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 1013 | $18,013 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at De Anza 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 official Department of Education two-year default rate for De Anza College follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 10.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 577 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $7,000 |
| Middle income | $6,707 |
| High income | $5,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,334 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $8,709 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at De Anza College.
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.
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.