by our College Data Analytics TeamBelow is federal data on the loans students use to pay for Summit College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. All figures come from the U.S. Department of Education and IPEDS.
At Summit College specifically, 87% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, with a typical loan of $6,017 apiece. This figure includes both private and federally funded student loans.
The typical federal loan comes to $6,391. That sits at or beyond the $5,500 first-year federal limit 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.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at Summit College, 61% borrow through federal student loan programs, borrowing on average $6,391 in federal loans per year.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $12,782 after two years and $25,564 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 | 61% |
| Average federal loan per year | $6,391 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 939 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $6,000,963 |
Graduating and withdrawing students at Summit College carry a median federal debt of $7,600 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $7,600 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $7,600 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,400 |
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 Summit College.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,800 |
| 25th percentile | $4,889 |
| 75th percentile | $14,126 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $18,252 |
How wide this percentile range is tells you how much borrowing varies across students at Summit College.
Median federal debt understates the full cost when PLUS loans are included. The totals below add PLUS borrowing for Summit College.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 281 | $5,905 |
| Completed (graduates) | 219 | $6,221 |
| Did not complete | 62 | $4,612 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $73.97/mo.
Federal data lets us separate Stafford borrowers from the rest at Summit College.
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 267 | — |
| No Stafford loan this year | 14 | — |
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Summit College.
Defaulting means failing to repay a federal student loan, which carries serious credit consequences. The federal two-year cohort default rate for Summit College is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 10.7% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 1397 |
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 | $5,280 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $7,600 |
| Continuing-generation students | $7,600 |
Dependency-Status Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,914 |
| Independent students | $7,600 |
The Department of Education computes gap indicators that show how borrowing differs between student groups at Summit College.
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.
Important to Remember
Declaring bankruptcy does not erase federal student loan debt. If you stop paying, the federal government can garnish a portion of your wages until the loans are repaid.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.