Grad PLUS Is Gone: How Grad Students Pay for School Now

What ended on July 1, 2026

Grad PLUS was a federal loan for graduate and professional students. It let you borrow up to your school’s full cost of attendance, minus other aid. “Cost of attendance” is the school’s yearly estimate of tuition, fees, housing, food, books and travel.

Grad PLUS ended for new borrowers on July 1, 2026. New grad students now get one federal loan: the Direct Unsubsidized Loan. “Unsubsidized” means interest builds from the day the money is paid out.

New federal loan limits for grad students

There is also a $257,500 lifetime cap on all your federal student loans, not counting Parent PLUS. Your undergraduate loans count toward it. Loans you have already paid down still count.

Each loan has a fee of 1.057%. It is taken out before you get the money. On a $20,500 loan, the fee is about $217.

If you study less than full-time, your yearly limit is lower. Your school can also set a lower limit for your program.

Which programs count as “professional”?

This is being decided in court. On June 24, 2026, a federal court in Washington, D.C. paused the Department of Education’s narrow rule. That rule listed only 11 fields.

The Department’s interim list now has 29 program types. It includes medicine, law, dentistry and pharmacy. For now it also includes physician assistant, physical therapy, occupational therapy and many nursing programs, such as MSN and DNP. The MBA and other business degrees are not on the list.

The list may change. The government did not appeal the June order, but the case goes on. Final court papers are due December 4, 2026, and a ruling could come around the end of 2026 or in early 2027. Ask your school how your program is classified before you borrow.

If the Department wins, programs outside its original 11 fields would go back to the $20,500 limit. Money already paid above that limit might have to be returned. NASFAA, the national group for financial aid officers, tells students to have a backup plan. Medicine and law were on the original list too.

Already borrowing? The legacy rule

Did you have a federal Direct Loan for your program before July 1, 2026? Then the old rules, including Grad PLUS, may still apply. It lasts while you stay in the same program at the same school. It ends after 3 academic years or when you finish, whichever comes first.

The rule is tied to your program and school. Talk to your aid office before you transfer or switch programs.

How to pay for grad school now, in this order

1. File the FAFSA. Grad students need it for federal loans and many school awards. The 2027–28 FAFSA opened on September 23, 2026.
2. Ask about assistantships. A teaching or research assistantship can cut your tuition and pay you a stipend (a set amount for living costs). Ask each department, not only the aid office.
3. Ask your employer. In 2026, an employer can pay up to $5,250 a year tax-free through a written educational assistance plan. The limit rises with inflation from 2027.
4. Apply for fellowships and scholarships. You don’t pay these back. See How to Find Scholarships.
5. Choose a lower-cost program. Public schools, in-state rates and some online programs cost much less.
6. Take Direct Unsubsidized Loans up to your limit.
7. Use private student loans last, only for the gap that is left.

Example: how big is your gap?

These are example numbers for one year in a master’s program. Use your own school’s figures.

Under the old rules, Grad PLUS could have covered that $9,250. Now you need another source, such as savings, a cheaper program or a private loan.

Private loans: what you give up

A private student loan comes from a bank, credit union or online lender. Your rate depends on your credit. Many students need a cosigner: a person who signs the loan with you and must pay if you don’t.

• Private loans don’t offer RAP, the federal income-based plan.
• Private loans don’t qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) or any other federal forgiveness.
• If you refinance federal loans into a private loan, you give up those protections for good.

Compare at least three lenders. Most show you a rate with a soft credit check, which does not hurt your credit score.

Repaying new federal grad loans

Loans first paid out on or after July 1, 2026 have two repayment choices:

• Standard plan: fixed payments over 10 to 25 years, based on how much you owe.
• Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP): payments of 1% to 10% of your adjusted gross income (AGI), with a $10 monthly minimum. AGI is your income on your tax return after some deductions. Payments drop by $50 a month for each dependent, and any balance left is forgiven after 30 years.

Read more about the new caps in the 2026 loan limits and Graduate Degree Options.

Checklist before you enroll

• Ask the aid office: is my program “graduate” or “professional”? Could that change?
• Get the cost of attendance for every year of the program, not just the first.
• Ask how many students get assistantships or grants, and how much they get.
• Ask your employer about tuition help and get the terms in writing.
• Work out your gap for each year and how you will cover it.
• Add up everything you will owe and the monthly payment after school.

More: Student Loans in 2026: A Simple Guide