by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend National Career Education: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
Looking at the entering class at National Career Education, 90% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, for an average of $10,846 per student, private and federal loans combined.
On the federal side, the average loan is $7,132. This meets or exceeds the $5,500 cap on first-year federal borrowing for the typical dependent freshman. Keep in mind the all-undergraduate averages further down count federal loans only, unlike this private-plus-federal freshman figure.
Counting every undergraduate at National Career Education, 53% use federal student loans to help pay for their education, borrowing on average $7,313 annually. This is 2.5% larger than the $7,132 typical freshmen borrow.
Repeating that yearly amount projects to about $14,626 over two years and about $29,252 over a four-year span. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 53% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,313 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 410 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $2,998,322 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at National Career Education carry a median federal debt of $7,600 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $7,600 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $7,853 |
| Students who withdrew | $3,800 |
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 National Career Education.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,800 |
| 25th percentile | $5,134 |
| 75th percentile | $8,867 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $9,500 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at National Career Education.
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 National Career Education.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 105 | $5,956 |
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 National Career Education.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 93 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 12 | — |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for National Career Education.
A loan default — failing to keep up with federal student-loan payments — is one of the worst financial outcomes a borrower can face. The official Department of Education two-year default rate for National Career Education follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 16.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1121 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $7,600 |
| Middle income | $7,600 |
| High income | $5,133 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $7,600 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,600 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,133 |
| Independent students | $8,489 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at National Career Education.
The Difference Between 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.
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.