This is real, unfortunately. While it might not seem concerning if mom and dad are willing to co-sign a private loan, in my experience as a financial aid professional, many grad students do not have parents willing and/or able to do so. Understanding that this loan will no longer be available to new grad students beginning with the 2026-27 academic year is very important as students plan their futures.
For a full list of the impact of the bill, which is now law, see this link: https://www.nasfaa.org/news-item/36704/Trump_Signs_Sprawling_Reconciliation_Package_Into_Law_Here_s_How_it_Impacts_Higher_Ed.
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There are some lenders who will lend to grad (and undergrad) students with no co-signer, but the interest rates are high (pushing in to the mid-teens.) I would expect that private education loan interest rates for grad school are going to increase simply because there is less competition since the fed rates are gone (for new borrowers starting in 2026.)
I also think this new Pell requirement is going to be really messy and create some new behaviors in the awarding of financial aid by colleges:
Pell Lifetime Eligibility Usage (LEU): The law retains a previous provision stating that students who receive grants or scholarships covering their entire cost of attendance (COA) would be ineligible to receive a Pell Grant, even if otherwise eligible for the program. However, the law does not include an earlier provision where students would see their Pell Lifetime Eligibility Usage (LEU) reduced as if they had been awarded Pell.
In good news for some families, there’s this FAFSA change:
Asset Exemptions: The law reinstates the exemption of family farm and small business assets from the SAI calculation and expands this asset exemption to family-owned commercial fisheries, with an effective date of July 1, 2026.
I agree about the full ride scholarship Pell provision. In my experience, schools often reduced the instructional aid by the Pell Grant amount, so this directly impacts the amount of aid available to be awarded by the school.
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We also covered this in one of our detailed blogs.
What’s Changing: New Federal Limits
Under the new law, federal borrowing for graduate students will be capped:
- Graduate (Academic) Programs: $20,500 annual limit, $100,000 lifetime maximum
- Professional Programs (Law, Medicine, etc.): $50,000 annual limit, $200,000 lifetime maximum.
Previously, Grad PLUS loans allowed students to borrow beyond federal limits, filling gaps left by Direct Unsubsidized Loans. Once the program is phased out, students will need to explore other options, such as private loans, scholarships, or institutional aid, to fund their education. Financial aid offices will be crucial partners in helping students navigate these choices and stay on track with their goals.
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Also, with the elimination of Grad PLUS loans for new borrowers after July 1, 2026, graduate and professional students may have less federal borrowing capacity than in prior years. That can create a funding gap between your program’s total cost and what you can cover through federal loans and personal resources.
Ascent has created a calculator to help you estimate that gap in under a minute. By entering your program length, cost of attendance, expected annual cost increases, and how you plan to pay (federal loans plus cash/scholarships/family support), you can quickly see what you’ll still need to finance.
Also, we have written a detailed post explaining how to use the calculator here.
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