Big Changes are Coming to Federal Student Aid

On July 4, 2025, the President signed the final version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) (H.R. 1) which included some substantial changes to federal student aid. We’re currently reviewing what this legislation means and are still waiting on additional guidance from the U.S. Department of Education in several areas. While it’s too soon to know all the impacts, the University is focused on how these changes could affect students— especially when it comes to new limits on graduate and parent borrowing. Most of the financial aid changes are expected to take effect starting July 1, 2026, unless noted otherwise. This information is subject to change as we receive additional information and guidance from the Department of Education.

Undergraduate Students

Policy Area	Updates
Federal Pell Grant Eligibility	Ineligible to receive Pell if your cost of attendance is already covered by other non-federal grants and/or scholarships. Cost of attendance includes tuition, fees, housing, food, books, course materials, supplies, & equipment, transportation, and miscellaneous living expenses.
Parent PLUS Loan Limits*	$20,000 academic year/$65K lifetime per dependent student
Student Loan Proration	Borrowers enrolled less than full-time (12 hours) will only be able to borrow a prorated maximum loan offer based on enrolled hours.

*If the student or parent borrower has a Federal Direct Loan made before July 1, 2026, while the dependent student is enrolled in a program of study, the parent may be able to borrow under the old loan limits for 3 academic years or the remainder of their dependent student’s expected time to credential, whichever is less.

Graduate

Policy Area	Updates
Student Loan Limits	$20,500 academic year/$100K lifetime for graduates
Student Loan Proration	Borrowers enrolled less than full-time will be offered a prorated maximum unsubsidized loan based on enrollment.
Graduate PLUS Loans	Eliminated if you begin your academic program on or after July 1, 2026*
Borrowing Cap	$257,000 borrowing cap on all federal loans (Excludes Parent Plus loans, includes undergraduate federal loans)

* Current graduate and professional students can continue under the existing loan limits and may keep using Graduate PLUS loans—but only for a limited time. This eligibility lasts until the earlier of: (1) the end of their current academic program, or (2) three academic years. To determine how much eligibility a student has left, we must take the total length of their program and subtract the time they’ve already been enrolled. A “current borrower” is a student who borrowed at least one Graduate PLUS or Direct Unsubsidized Loan before July 1, 2026, and who stays in the same academic program after that date.

 

Undergraduate and Professional Students

Policy Area

Updates

Loan Repayment Plans

– Implemented new and simplified Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) with rates 1% to 10% of discretionary income – Eliminated SAVE plan – Extended forgiveness periods to 30 years – Introduced minimum monthly payments – All loans must be repaid on the same plan, so if you borrow before and after July 1, 2026 you will be limited to the standard or RAP plans – If you do not borrow new loans after July 1, 2026 you will be eligible to enroll in the current Standard, Graduated, Extended, or current Income Based (IBR) repayment plans, and may also opt in to the new RAP

2026-27 & Beyond Graduate Student Loan Borrowing Limits

Expected time to credential is, from July 1, 2026, the expected time for a student to complete a program that is equal to or the lesser of:

• Three academic years, as defined in 34 CFR 668.3; or
• The period determined by calculating the difference
  • the program length of student in which is enrolled; and
  • the period of such program of study that such individual has completed as of the date of determination

All information is tentative pending issuance of final regulatory text by the Department of Education