by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Tri-County Technical College— how much they borrow, how that debt is spread across the student body, and what it costs to pay back. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
Among first-year students at TCTC, 22% of new students use loans toward freshman-year expenses, with a typical loan of $7,799 each, across private and federal loan sources.
Federal loans alone average $5,326, or about 96.8% of the typical first-year dependent student borrowing cap of $5,500. Be aware: the undergraduate-wide averages below exclude private loans, while this freshman number includes them.
Among all degree-seeking undergrads at TCTC, 13% take out federal student loans, at an average of $5,434 in federal loans per year. This is 2.0% more than the first-year federal average of $5,326.
At a steady annual pace, that totals around $10,868 in two years and roughly $21,736 by the fourth year. These projections assume the same federal borrowing each year and exclude private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 13% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,434 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 637 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $3,461,578 |
The middle borrower at TCTC owes $5,500 in federal borrowing.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $5,500 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $9,000 |
| Students who withdrew | $5,500 |
Withdrawn-student debt matters because those borrowers carry the loans without the degree that helps repay them.
Half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles shown below for TCTC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,750 |
| 25th percentile | $3,204 |
| 75th percentile | $8,502 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $14,750 |
The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is the clearest single measure of how widely borrowing varies at TCTC.
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 TCTC.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 577 | $12,000 |
| Completed (graduates) | 75 | $10,500 |
| Did not complete | 502 | $12,000 |
Completers face an estimated standard 10-year monthly payment on their PLUS-inclusive debt of roughly $124.86/mo.
The split below distinguishes Stafford borrowers from non-Stafford borrowers at TCTC.
Stafford vs Non-Stafford (any year)
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Used a Stafford loan | 511 | $11,824 |
| No Stafford loan | 66 | $15,000 |
Stafford This Year vs Not
| Cohort | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford loan this year | 312 | $10,000 |
| No Stafford loan this year | 265 | $16,211 |
Repayment burden translates the debt figures into what a borrower actually pays each month. TCTC.
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 TCTC is shown below.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 24.4% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 927 |
A lower default rate generally signals that graduates earn enough to manage their loan payments.
Borrowing varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
By Family Income
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $5,500 |
| 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 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $9,350 |
These pre-calculated indicators summarize the borrowing gaps between cohorts at TCTC.
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.
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.