by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Lake Michigan College: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At LMC specifically, 22% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, with a typical loan of $4,238 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
Federal loans alone average $3,921, equal to roughly 71.3% of the $5,500 federal limit that applies to a typical first-year dependent borrower. Remember the all-undergraduate figures below leave out private loans, so they will look lower than this private-plus-federal freshman amount.
For undergraduates overall at LMC, 21% finance part of their studies with federal loans, borrowing on average $4,317 a year. That is 10.1% higher than the $3,921 typical freshmen borrow.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $8,634 across two years and $17,268 across a four-year program. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 21% |
| Average federal loan per year | $4,317 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 374 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,614,474 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at LMC carry a median federal debt of $5,104 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,104 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $9,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,366 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 LMC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,000 |
| 25th percentile | $3,500 |
| 75th percentile | $12,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $22,957 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at LMC.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at LMC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 146 | $11,190 |
| Completed (graduates) | 27 | $13,000 |
| Did not complete | 119 | $10,419 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $154.58/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at LMC.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 63 | $10,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 83 | $13,571 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. LMC.
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 LMC appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 26.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 510 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $5,250 |
| Middle income | $4,761 |
| High income | $4,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,249 |
| Continuing-generation students | $4,500 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,516 |
| Independent students | $5,250 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for LMC.
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
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.