by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Lakes Region Community 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.
For incoming students at Lakes Region Community College, 42% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, at roughly $6,102 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,122, amounting to 93.1% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. 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 Lakes Region Community College, 39% finance part of their studies with federal loans, averaging $5,968 per year. That is 16.5% higher than the $5,122 borrowed by freshmen.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $11,936 across two years and $23,872 over four years. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 39% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,968 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 191 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $1,139,909 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Lakes Region Community College carry a median federal debt of $9,500 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $9,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $18,525 |
| Students who withdrew | $8,995 |
Debt carried by students who withdrew is a key risk signal — these borrowers owe money without having earned the credential.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for Lakes Region Community College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,500 |
| 25th percentile | $4,583 |
| 75th percentile | $15,834 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $26,250 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Lakes Region Community College.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Lakes Region Community College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 89 | $13,555 |
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at Lakes Region Community College.
Current-Year Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 55 | $12,956 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 34 | $14,125 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. Lakes Region Community 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 Lakes Region Community College follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 8.8% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 409 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
The breakdowns below show median federal debt by income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $9,500 |
| Middle income | $9,500 |
| High income | $7,663 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,775 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $7,100 |
| Independent students | $12,334 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Lakes Region Community College.
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.
Important to Remember
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.