by our College Data Analytics TeamThis page focuses on the debt students take on to attend Valley College-Martinsburg: median debt, the percentile spread, total borrowing including PLUS loans, and the cost to repay. The data below is drawn directly from federal sources.
At Valley College of Technology, 79% of first-year students take on loan debt, averaging $6,385 per borrower, covering both private and federal loans.
On the federal side, the average loan is $5,485, amounting to 99.7% of the $5,500 first-year federal borrowing limit for a typical dependent freshman. Bear in mind the undergraduate averages later on cover federal loans only, whereas this freshman total folds in private loans too.
Across the full undergraduate body at Valley College of Technology (freshmen included), 82% take out federal student loans, for a typical $5,679 a year. That amounts to 3.5% higher than the $5,485 freshmen take on.
Borrowing the same amount each year would add up to roughly $11,358 in two years and roughly $22,716 over a four-year span. This projection keeps yearly federal borrowing flat and excludes private and Parent PLUS loans.
| Undergraduate federal borrowing | Value |
|---|---|
| Share using federal loans | 82% |
| Average federal loan per year | $5,679 |
| Undergraduates with a federal loan | 862 |
| Total federal loans (one year) | $4,895,268 |
The middle borrower at Valley College of Technology owes $9,418 in federal student loans.
| Borrower group | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| All federal borrowers | $9,418 |
| Students who completed (graduates) | $9,500 |
| Students who withdrew | $4,750 |
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 Valley College of Technology.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,750 |
| 25th percentile | $5,271 |
| 75th percentile | $9,500 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $9,500 |
The spread between the lowest- and highest-debt deciles summarizes how variable outcomes are at Valley College of Technology.
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 Valley College of Technology.
| Group | Borrowers | Median debt incl. PLUS |
|---|---|---|
| All borrowers | 117 | $5,930 |
| Completed (graduates) | 82 | $6,450 |
| Did not complete | 35 | $4,368 |
On a standard 10-year plan, the median completing borrower would pay about $76.7/mo.
These figures turn the debt totals into a monthly repayment picture for Valley College of Technology.
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 Valley College of Technology follows.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2-year cohort default rate | 7.2% |
| Borrowers in the cohort | 55 |
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.
Borrowing by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $9,349 |
| Middle income | $9,500 |
| High income | $9,500 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Borrowing
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,404 |
| Continuing-generation students | $9,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,500 |
| Independent students | $9,500 |
Federal data publishes the following gap measures for Valley College of Technology.
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.
Important to Remember
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.