WACO, Texas (KXXV) — New federal student loan limits take effect July 1, changing how much money future law, medical, and other graduate students can borrow for their education. At Baylor University, some students say the new limits could make pursuing advanced degrees more challenging for the next generation of professionals.
Watch Full Story Here:
Most graduate students will be limited to $20,500 per year in federal loans with a $100,000 lifetime cap. Professional degree programs, including law and medicine, will have higher limits of $50,000 per year and a $200,000 total lifetime cap.
Baylor law students are currently paying just shy of $70,000 per academic year, leaving students to cover close to $20,000 themselves while attending school full time.
Corbett Armstrong, a Baylor law student who began his program in February, said he will not be affected by the changes because he enrolled before they take effect.
"Yeah, I do take out loans. For me, since I started before the change, I get grandfathered in and so for me personally it won't affect me, but, um, you know, at a private school like Baylor, you know, tuition is pretty high, and so I can imagine like students that are starting after me will be affected," Armstrong said.
Armstrong said he believes the long-term effect of the new caps could actually push tuition costs down — but not without short-term difficulty.
"In the long term tuition costs are generally probably going to go down because as schools have to grapple with lower loan caps that means students are going to be less inclined to go to places with higher costs. I think it will eventually drive costs down, but in the short term it will probably make things kind of difficult," Armstrong said.
Armstrong also offered encouragement to those still considering law school despite the changes.
"I think law school is a wonderful thing. So if you are interested, you definitely should try," Armstrong said.
The full impact of the changes may take years to measure. Students considering law school, medical school, or other advanced degrees are encouraged to carefully review their financial aid options before enrolling.
Undergraduate students will not see new borrowing limits, but new borrowers will have fewer repayment options after graduation.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
