The Department of Education (ED) on Thursday announced several new rules to limit graduate student borrowing in a bid to make higher degrees “more affordable.”
The department said it is eliminating the Grad PLUS loan program, which offers limitless loans for graduate programs, saying this measure will “help curb tuition growth,” according to the press release. ED is also establishing “reasonable” loan limits for graduate programs and offering new, income-based repayment plans for loans.
“The Trump Administration is focused on putting students and taxpayers first, which is why we are implementing durable policies to make higher education more affordable,” Nicholas Kent, Under Secretary of Education, said in a statement. “President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts Act addresses longstanding challenges in higher education and federal student lending, including exorbitant tuition costs, unchecked borrowing, and a confusing maze of repayment options that too often leave borrowers with higher balances despite making payments.”
“This final rule will help ensure students can access higher education without racking up excessive loan debt, offer repayment options that better serve borrowers, and force institutions to reduce costs,” Kent’s statement added.
The actions will take effect in July.
The administration emphasized that limitless student loan borrowing has fueled an unprecedented rise in tuition costs, which has increased more than 900% since the 1980s. Kent told reporters that eliminating Grad PLUS and capping loan amounts will force universities to stop hiking tuition costs.
“This is just basic economics,” Kent said. “When there is more money in the system, institutions of higher education are going to raise their prices.”
In 2025, the department announced it would begin pursuing involuntary collections on defaulted student loans after the Biden administration paused collection efforts for five years. As many as 75% of borrowers are behind in their student loan payments, with about 4,000,000 borrowers in late-stage delinquency.
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