by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Florida SouthWestern State College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
Looking at the entering class at FSW, 12% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, averaging $3,525 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $2,979, equal to roughly 54.2% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Looking at all undergraduates at FSW, freshmen included, 14% take out federal student loans, for a typical $3,517 per year. This works out to 18.1% larger than the $2,979 borrowed by freshmen.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $7,034 in two years and roughly $14,068 across a four-year program. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 14% |
| Average federal loan per year | $3,517 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 1,471 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,173,689 |
The middle borrower at FSW owes $5,000 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $8,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $3,877 |
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 FSW.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,750 |
| 25th percentile | $2,500 |
| 75th percentile | $9,164 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $17,441 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at FSW.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for FSW.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 524 | $10,871 |
| Completed (graduates) | 126 | $11,670 |
| Did not complete | 398 | $10,562 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $138.77/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 FSW.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 209 | $8,707 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 315 | $12,200 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for FSW.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for FSW follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 12.0% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1852 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $5,250 |
| Middle income | $4,971 |
| High income | $4,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $4,813 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,250 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,379 |
| Independent students | $6,750 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at FSW.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.