Important Federal Student Loan Changes Effective July 1, 2026

Changes to federal student loans were enacted on July 4, 2025 through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. These changes will affect how graduate and professional students finance their education beginning on July 1, 2026.

For purposes of these changes:

  • MA, MA/CAGS, and Leadership PsyD students are classified as Graduate students.
  • Clinical Psychology PsyD students are classified as Professional students.

For New Borrowers (as of July 1, 2026)

Eliminated

For Current Borrowers (Prior to July 1, 2026)

If a borrower has a Federal Direct Loan made before July 1, 2026, while enrolled in a program of study, the borrower can continue to borrow from the program for 3 consecutive academic years or the remainder of their expected time to credential, whichever is less.

For New Borrowers (as of July 1, 2026)

New students who have not received a Direct Unsubsidized Loan disbursement before July 1, 2026 will be subject to the following new Direct Unsubsidized Loan limits:

  • Annual and Aggregate (lifetime) limits
  • Graduate: $20,500 annual; $100,000 aggregate
  • Professional: $50,000 annual; $200,000 aggregate
  • Borrowers who are both graduate and professional students at some point in their educational careers may only borrow up to $200,000 in total for graduate and professional school. 

For Current Borrowers (Prior to July 1, 2026)

If a borrower has a Federal Direct Loan made before July 1, 2026, while enrolled in a program of study, the current loan limits continue to apply for 3 consecutive academic years or the remainder of their expected time to credential, whichever is less.

For New Borrowers (as of July 1, 2026)

A separate lifetime limit of $257,500 applies to all federal student loans borrowed for undergraduate, graduate, and professional studies.

For Current Borrowers (Prior to July 1, 2026)

If a borrower has a Federal Direct Loan made before July 1, 2026, while enrolled in a credentialed program, the borrower can continue to borrow under current loan limits for 3 consecutive academic years or the remainder of their expected time to credential, whichever is less.

Requires institutions to prorate annual loan amounts in direct proportion to the percent of full-time status the student is enrolled.

*The information in the drop-down menus above is gathered from a document published by The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators

Financing Your Education

Scholarships

Several scholarships at William James College are merit scholarships. These scholarships are awarded in your offer of admission letter. Your financial aid award letter will include any scholarships you’ve been awarded, but will not include any additional scholarships, just loans and work-study if applicable.

Private Loans are Available but do not qualify for Federal Loan Repayment Programs

You may also consider private loans as another option to finance your education—ELMselect has some lenders listed. Please note: You will be billed after registration. We recommend waiting until then to apply for a private loan so you will know how much you need. 

Next Steps

The information above reflects the most current guidance available but is subject to change. We will continue to keep this page updated as new information is provided by the Federal government. If you have any questions, please contact us at financialaid@williamjames.edu.