by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Folsom Lake College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
Among first-year students at Folsom Lake, 1% of freshmen borrow to help pay for their first year, for an average of $6,359 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
The average federal loan is $6,359. This is at or above the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing cap that applies to the typical dependent freshman. 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 Folsom Lake, freshmen included, 2% borrow through federal student loan programs, with a mean of $7,597 a year. This works out to 19.5% above the $6,359 borrowed by freshmen.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $15,194 across two years and $30,388 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 | 2% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,597 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 208 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,580,094 |
The middle borrower at Folsom Lake owes $9,255 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $9,255 |
| Students who withdrew | $9,250 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Folsom Lake.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,062 |
| 25th percentile | $3,500 |
| 75th percentile | $12,223 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $21,500 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Folsom Lake.
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 Folsom Lake.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 728 | $13,311 |
| Completed (graduates) | 27 | $10,000 |
| Did not complete | 701 | $13,378 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $118.91/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 Folsom Lake.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 691 | $13,235 |
| No Stafford loan | 37 | $13,500 |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 11 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 717 | — |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Folsom Lake.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Folsom Lake is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 12.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 121 |
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 | $9,500 |
| Middle income | $9,238 |
| High income | $5,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,354 |
| Continuing-generation students | $8,250 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $9,500 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Folsom Lake.
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
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.