by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Santa Monica College: 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.
At SMC specifically, 2% of incoming students take out a loan to help cover first-year costs, with a typical loan of $5,884 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,884. This reaches or tops the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing cap for a typical dependent student. Note that average undergraduate loan amounts shown later do not include private loans — so the full freshman figure above is not directly comparable.
Across the full undergraduate body at SMC (freshmen included), 3% finance part of their studies with federal loans, borrowing on average $7,149 a year. This is 21.5% larger than the first-year federal average of $5,884.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $14,298 by year two and around $28,596 over four years. These figures assume identical federal borrowing each year and omit private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 3% |
| Average federal loan per year | $7,149 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 730 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $5,218,458 |
The median student at SMC borrows $6,500 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $6,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $6,450 |
| Students who withdrew | $6,500 |
The figure for students who withdrew is worth watching: debt without a completed credential is the hardest to repay.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for SMC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,000 |
| 25th percentile | $3,500 |
| 75th percentile | $6,750 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $11,000 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at SMC.
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 SMC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 2673 | $20,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 76 | $27,816 |
| Did not complete | 2597 | $19,934 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $330.76/mo.
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 SMC.
Borrowers With Any Stafford Loan
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 2527 | $20,000 |
| No Stafford loan | 146 | $18,473 |
Borrowers With a Stafford Loan This Year
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 89 | $19,232 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 2584 | $20,000 |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for SMC.
The default rate measures how many borrowers fall behind and ultimately fail to repay their federal loans. Two-year cohort default-rate data for SMC appears below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 5.5% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 363 |
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.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,750 |
| Middle income | $5,500 |
| High income | $5,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $6,750 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $8,000 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at SMC.
Subsidized vs. 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.
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.