by our College Data Analytics TeamHere you will find what students actually borrow to attend Piedmont Virginia Community College, including completion-adjusted borrowing and a standard repayment estimate. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
Among first-year students at PVCC, 4% of incoming undergraduates borrow in year one, with a typical loan of $6,026 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $6,026. 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.
For undergraduates overall at PVCC, 5% rely on federal student loans toward their education, averaging $5,556 annually. It comes to 7.8% smaller than the $6,026 freshmen take on.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $11,112 over two years and about $22,224 over four years. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 5% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,556 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 146 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $811,220 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at PVCC carry a median federal debt of $5,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $8,750 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,328 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Looking only at the median is misleading — these four percentiles describe the full debt distribution for borrowers at PVCC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,500 |
| 25th percentile | $2,750 |
| 75th percentile | $9,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $17,208 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at PVCC.
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 PVCC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 314 | $13,757 |
| Completed (graduates) | 92 | $13,060 |
| Did not complete | 222 | $13,908 |
For students who completed, the median total debt including PLUS loans works out to a standard 10-year payment of about $155.3/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at PVCC.
Any-Stafford Borrowers
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 304 | — |
| No Stafford loan | 10 | — |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 72 | $12,070 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 242 | $14,258 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for PVCC.
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 PVCC is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 11.3% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 292 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,379 |
| Middle income | $5,500 |
| High income | $5,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,500 |
Dependent vs Independent Borrowers
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $7,000 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at PVCC.
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.
Worth Knowing
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.