One Big Beautiful Bill Act Information

On July 4, 2025, the President signed into law the final version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) (H.R. 1) (“BBB”). We continue to review the impact of this legislation and are awaiting final guidance from the U.S. Department of Education in many areas. While it is too early to determine all of the effects, the University is focused on understanding how the legislation will affect students, particularly in terms of new limits on graduate and parent borrowing.  The changes impacting financial aid are scheduled to go into effect starting July 1, 2026 unless otherwise stated. The below updates are based on the most recent Reimagining Innovative Student Engagement Committee (RISE) negotiated rulemaking sessions, as well as the final rules from the AHEAD committee.  

Full-Time Academic Year Definition:

To be considered full-time during the academic year

  • Undergraduate Students: Must take 24 credit hours over the course of the fall and spring terms 
  • Graduate/Professional/PhD Students: Must take 18 credits over the fall and spring terms 

Half-Time Enrollment:

You must be enrolled at least half-time to receive offered loans in a given semester (or starting quarter for quarter programs). The minimum number of credits per semester (or starting quarter) to be considered half-time is: 

  • Undergraduate Students: 6 credit hours 
  • Graduate/Professional/PhD Students: 4.5 credit hours 

Less Than Full-Time Enrollment:

Starting with 2026-2027 if you will not be enrolled full-time for the full academic year based on the above definition your Federal Loan will need to be adjusted. This is called a Schedule of Reduction (SOR) change. The formula used to calculate the reduction is as follows:

A mathematic formula depicting the number of credit hours enrolled for an academic year over the number of credit hours considered full time for that academic year program of study all multiplied by one hundred equals the reduced annual loan limit percentage