Cohort Default Rate

Cohort Default Rate

The Cohort Default Rate is defined as the percentage of a college’s student borrowers who enter repayment on Federal Direct Loans during a specific fiscal year and default on those loans within the cohort default period.  It is calculated annually by the U.S. Department of Education.  The cohort default period refers to the three-year period that begins on October 1 of a fiscal year when the borrower enters repayment and ends on September 30 of the second year following the fiscal year in which the borrower entered repayment.  The most recent Cohort Default Rate, released in September 2021, is for borrowers who entered repayment in the 2018 federal fiscal year and defaulted in one of the following federal fiscal years: 2018, 2019, or 2020.

A student defaults on a federal loan after at least 270 days (nine months) of non-payment.  Defaulting on a loan has several serious consequences, including adding significantly to the cost of a loan and ruining the borrower’s credit score.

Davidson-Davie Community College’s Cohort Default Rate: 13.2%

National Average: 7.3%

Visit Repaying Your Student Loans for information on how to avoid defaulting on your Federal Direct Loans.