by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend NTMA Training Centers of Southern California— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. These figures are reported by the Department of Education and IPEDS.
At NTMA specifically, 17% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, at roughly $6,454 each — a figure that counts both private and federal student loans.
The average federal loan is $6,454. That is at or past the $5,500 federal first-year limit 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 NTMA, 30% finance part of their studies with federal loans, averaging $7,855 per year. This works out to 21.7% larger than the $6,454 borrowed by freshmen.
Borrowing at that rate every year works out to about $15,710 over two years and about $31,420 after four. The estimate holds federal borrowing constant and does not count private or Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 30% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,855 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 61 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $479,133 |
The median student at NTMA borrows $8,785 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $8,785 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $8,785 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,374 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.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 NTMA.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $4,818 |
| 25th percentile | $5,500 |
| 75th percentile | $8,700 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $9,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at NTMA.
PLUS loans — taken out by parents or graduate students — add to the total cost of attendance financed by debt at NTMA.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 34 | $4,495 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. NTMA.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. The federal two-year cohort default rate for NTMA appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 20.6% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 518 |
The cohort default rate tracks borrowers who entered repayment in a given year and defaulted within the two-year measurement window.
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 | $8,785 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $8,785 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for NTMA.
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?
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.