The dataset behind these findings is, to our knowledge, the most comprehensive independent analysis of the financial impact of the Grad PLUS elimination under OBBBA.
Of the degree programs in our dataset, 95.2% exceed the new caps, producing an aid-adjusted annual funding gap of $51.8 billion. The Grad PLUS program being eliminated originates $15 billion per year; the entire private student loan market originates roughly $14 billion, and approximately 90% of those loans require a co-signer.
What happens next depends on how institutions, lenders, and students respond. The data in this report captures 2025–2026 costs across 1,861 universities in the last year before the new caps take effect. This baseline will be difficult to reconstruct once institutions update their published rates, and may serve as a reference point for evaluating the impact of these changes going forward.