Enrollment intensity is the percentage of a full-time course load in which you are enrolled. It is used to determine your federal Direct Loan eligibility when you are enrolled less than full time.

For undergraduate students, 12 credit hours is considered full-time enrollment for this purpose. For example:

• 12 credit hours = 100% enrollment intensity
• 9 credit hours = 75% enrollment intensity
• 6 credit hours = 50% enrollment intensity

Beginning with the 2026–27 academic year, students enrolled less than full time may receive less in federal Direct Loans based on their enrollment intensity.

Yes. Dropping a class can change your enrollment intensity and will reduce the amount you are eligible to receive in federal Direct Loans.

The timing of the enrollment change also matters. For fall 2026, your federal loan amount is determined based on your enrollment when federal financial aid is disbursed. Once your fall federal aid has disbursed, dropping a course will not result in an adjustment to federal loans already disbursed for fall.

However, enrollment changes may affect your eligibility for future federal loan disbursements.

Contact our office before dropping a course if you have questions about how the change could affect your financial aid.

Yes. Even if your fall federal loans have already disbursed, dropping a fall course may affect the amount you are eligible to borrow for spring.

Your spring federal loan eligibility will be based on your applicable enrollment intensity. Changes to your fall enrollment can therefore result in a reduction to your remaining annual loan eligibility for spring.

If you are considering dropping a fall course, contact our office to understand how the change may affect your spring aid.

Time to credential refers to the amount of coursework you have remaining to complete your degree or credential.

Beginning with the 2026–27 academic year, federal law requires annual federal loan eligibility to more closely align with the amount of time a student has remaining in their program. Students who have less than a full academic year remaining may have their federal loan eligibility reduced.

If you are expected to complete your degree before the end of the academic year, you may not be eligible for the full annual federal loan amount.

Federal law now requires loan eligibility to more closely align with your remaining time to complete your degree. As a result, students who have less than a full academic year of coursework remaining may have their annual loan eligibility reduced.

Your individual eligibility depends on your remaining coursework and enrollment.

Beginning July 1, 2026, new Parent PLUS borrowers are subject to an annual borrowing limit of $20,000 and an aggregate, or lifetime, limit of $65,000 per dependent student.

To support consistent borrowing throughout the academic year, the University of Iowa limits Parent PLUS Loan borrowing to $10,000 per semester.

These limits apply per dependent student, rather than per parent.

Not necessarily. A legacy provision allows the previous Parent PLUS borrowing rules to continue for certain students and parents.

If a parent previously borrowed a Parent PLUS Loan for the student, or the student received a federal Direct Subsidized or Unsubsidized Loan before July 1, 2026, the previous Parent PLUS Loan limits may continue to apply for that same student.

The legacy provision does not automatically apply to other dependent students in the family. A parent borrowing for another dependent student who first receives applicable federal loans on or after July 1, 2026, would be subject to the new Parent PLUS limits.

No. The Graduate PLUS Loan program is no longer available to new graduate and professional student borrowers beginning July 1, 2026.

Graduate and professional students who do not qualify for the legacy provision are limited to the applicable federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan limits.

Private student loans may be an option for students who need additional funding, but private loans have different eligibility requirements, interest rates, repayment terms and borrower protections than federal student loans.

You may qualify for the Graduate PLUS legacy provision if you:

• Received a federal Direct Loan disbursement before July 1, 2026, and
• Remain enrolled in the same credentialed academic program at the same institution.

If eligible, you may continue borrowing under the previous Graduate PLUS rules for up to three additional academic years or the remainder of your expected time to complete the credential, whichever is less.

Changing programs may cause you to lose eligibility for the Graduate PLUS legacy provision.

The legacy provision requires you to remain enrolled in the same credentialed academic program at the same institution. If you move into a different program, you will generally become subject to the federal loan rules and borrowing limits that took effect July 1, 2026.

Contact our office before changing programs if you currently qualify for the legacy provision and have questions about how the change may affect your federal loan eligibility.

The Graduate PLUS legacy provision is tied to continuing in the same credentialed academic program at the same institution.

If you transfer to another institution, you will no longer qualify for the legacy provision and will be subject to the federal loan programs and borrowing limits in effect beginning July 1, 2026.

Graduate and professional students who do not qualify for the legacy provision are subject to new annual and aggregate Direct Unsubsidized Loan limits.

Graduate students

• Annual limit: $20,500
• Aggregate limit: $100,000

Professional students

• Annual limit: $50,000
• Aggregate limit: $200,000

Amounts borrowed for undergraduate study are not included in these graduate and professional aggregate limits.

Students who borrow as both graduate and professional students at different points in their education may borrow no more than a combined $200,000 for graduate and professional study.