by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Highlands College of Montana Tech, 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 Highlands College of Montana Tech, 54% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, borrowing on average $6,475 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $4,158, or about 75.6% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Across the full undergraduate body at Highlands College of Montana Tech (freshmen included), 43% take out federal student loans, averaging $4,789 a year. That amounts to 15.2% larger than the $4,158 typical freshmen borrow.
Carrying that yearly figure forward comes to roughly $9,578 over two years and about $19,156 after four. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 43% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,789 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 146 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $699,218 |
The median student at Highlands College of Montana Tech borrows $9,847 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $9,847 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $18,750 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,523 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
The median hides the spread, so the percentiles below show cumulative federal debt at four points in the distribution for Highlands College of Montana Tech.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $4,750 |
| 75th percentile | $25,575 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $37,525 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at Highlands College of Montana Tech.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Highlands College of Montana Tech.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 329 | $10,600 |
| Completed (graduates) | 130 | $12,000 |
| Did not complete | 199 | $9,871 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $142.69/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Highlands College of Montana Tech.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 318 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 11 | — |
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 258 | $10,202 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 71 | $12,000 |
The indicators below describe what the typical debt costs to pay back at Highlands College of Montana Tech.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for Highlands College of Montana Tech appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 11.1% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 661 |
This rate follows a borrower cohort from the start of repayment through the two-year window the Department of Education uses.
Median debt differs by income tier, first-generation status, and whether the student is financially dependent.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $10,500 |
| Middle income | $9,361 |
| High income | $9,724 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $10,400 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $8,250 |
| Independent students | $13,217 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Highlands College of Montana Tech.
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.
Did You Know?
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.