Starting July 1, 2026, a federal proposal would cap student borrowing for professional degree programs at $50,000 per year with a $200,000 lifetime limit, and cap borrowing for graduate programs not deemed professional at $20,500 per year with a $100,000 lifetime limit.
July 01, 2026
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temporal
Proposed federal student loan borrowing limits tied to definitions of professional and non-professional graduate programs.
The 'one big, beautiful bill' legislation establishes federal graduate student borrowing caps that, starting 2026-07-01, limit students in programs defined as professional to $50,000 per year with a $200,000 lifetime cap, and limit students in graduate programs not defined as professional to $20,500 per year with a $100,000 lifetime cap.
July 01, 2026
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policy
New statutory borrowing limits for graduate and professional students created by recently enacted legislation.
The U.S. Department of Education's proposal defines a professional degree as one that 'signifies both completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession, and a level of professional skill beyond that normally required for a bachelor's degree' and lists pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, podiatry and theology as examples of professional degree programs.
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definition
Proposed regulatory definition and examples used to determine eligibility for higher student loan limits.
The referenced federal law associated with the proposal eliminates the Grad PLUS program, which previously allowed graduate students to borrow up to the full cost of obtaining a degree.
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policy
Change to federal graduate loan eligibility and borrowing limits.
The U.S. Department of Education stated that 95% of nursing students would not be impacted by the proposed borrowing cap and that enrolled students would be grandfathered into current lending limits to prevent barriers to completion.
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statistic
Agency projection about the distribution of nursing students relative to the proposed loan caps.
The 'one big, beautiful bill' legislation eliminates the Grad PLUS loan program, which previously allowed graduate students to borrow up to the full cost of obtaining a degree.
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policy
Statutory change removing a federal graduate borrowing mechanism.
The U.S. Department of Education's proposed definition of a 'professional degree' states that such a degree 'signifies both completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession, and a level of professional skill beyond that normally required for a bachelor's degree.'
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definition
Administrative definition used to determine which graduate programs qualify for higher federal loan limits.
Under the U.S. Department of Education's proposal, programs defined as professional degrees include pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, podiatry, and theology.
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classification
List of program types the department's proposal treats as professional degrees for loan-cap purposes.