by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Harcum 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.
For incoming students at Harcum College, 67% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, borrowing on average $7,593 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,465, representing 99.4% of the $5,500 first-year borrowing cap for the typical first-year dependent student. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Counting every undergraduate at Harcum College, 72% finance part of their studies with federal loans, with a mean of $7,263 per year. That amounts to 32.9% greater than the $5,465 freshmen take on.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $14,526 over two years and about $29,052 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 | 72% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,263 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 652 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,735,609 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Harcum College carry a median federal debt of $12,000 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $12,000 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $18,440 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,333 |
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 Harcum College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,164 |
| 25th percentile | $8,000 |
| 75th percentile | $22,438 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $29,500 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Harcum 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 Harcum College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 291 | $16,501 |
| Completed (graduates) | 135 | $20,400 |
| Did not complete | 156 | $15,561 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $242.58/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Harcum College.
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 269 | $17,677 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 22 | $9,316 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Harcum College.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for Harcum College appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 8.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 443 |
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 | $12,000 |
| Middle income | $12,000 |
| High income | $12,000 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $12,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $11,000 |
| Independent students | $13,250 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Harcum College.
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.
Important to Remember
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.