Federal Student Loan Schedule of Reductions
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed into law on July 4, 2025, introduced major changes to federal student aid programs. Several provisions affecting student loans were included in the bill. Among the most significant changes is that beginning July 1, 2026, Federal Direct Loans must be reduced based on the number of credits in which a student is enrolled. This reduction, or proration, process is called the Schedule of Reductions (SOR).
Like the Pell grant, students will be offered the maximum amount of Federal Direct Loan funding per year based on full-time enrollment. See the chart below which details the number of credits in which a student must be enrolled per term to be considered full-time for financial aid purposes.
| Full Time Students | Term Enrollment |
| Undergraduate Students | 12 credits |
| Graduate Students (Semester/Trimester) | 9 credits |
| Graduate Students (Quarter) | 6 credits |
With the new Federal Direct Loan SOR requirement, only full-time students will receive the full amount of their annual loan offer. If a student is enrolled less than full-time for a term, they will not be eligible to receive the full-time amount of loans offered to them. Instead, the University must calculate the percentage of loan funding the student is eligible to receive based on the number of credits for which they are enrolled.
See below for Full-Time annual Federal Direct Loan limits:
| Dependent Students | Independent Students | |
| Freshmen | $5,500 total (with a max of $3,500 Subsidized) | $9,500 total (with a max of $3,500 Subsidized) |
| Sophomore | $6,500 total (with a max of $4,500 Subsidized) | $10,500 total (with a max of $4,500 Subsidized) |
| Junior | $7,500 total (with a max of $5,500 Subsidized) | $12,500 total (with a max of $5,500 Subsidized) |
| Senior | $7,500 total (with a max of $5,500 Subsidized) | $12,500 total (with a max of $5,500 Subsidized) |
| Graduate Student | $20,500 Unsubsidized only | |
Schedule of Reductions
The SOR is done based on a direct calculation of credits enrolled vs. the full time requirement:
| Undergraduates | ||||
| Enrolled Credits | ÷ | Full-Time Credits | x 100 = | % of Full-Time loan you can receive: |
| 6 | ÷ | 12 | x 100 = | 50% |
| 7 | ÷ | 12 | x 100 = | 58% |
| 8 | ÷ | 12 | x 100 = | 67% |
| 9 | ÷ | 12 | x 100 = | 75% |
| 10 | ÷ | 12 | x 100 = | 83% |
| 11 | ÷ | 12 | x 100 = | 92% |
| Graduate - Semester and Trimester | ||||
| 5 | ÷ | 9 | x 100 = | 55% |
| 6 | ÷ | 9 | x 100 = | 66% |
| 7 | ÷ | 9 | x 100 = | 77% |
| 8 | ÷ | 9 | x 100 = | 88% |
| Graduate - Quarter | ||||
| 3 | ÷ | 6 | x 100 = | 50% |
| 4 | ÷ | 6 | x 100 = | 67% |
| 5 | ÷ | 6 | x 100 = | 83% |
Examples
| Undergraduates | Dependent Students | Independent Students |
| Freshmen | $5,500 total | $9,500 total |
| (with a max of $3,500 Subsidized) | (with a max of $3,500 Subsidized) | |
| 6 | $ 2,750 | $ 4,750 |
| 9 | $ 4,125 | $ 7,125 |
| 12+ | $ 5,500 | $ 9,500 |
| Sophomore | $6,500 total | $10,500 total |
| (with a max of $4,500 Subsidized) | (with a max of $4,500 Subsidized) | |
| 6 | $ 3,250 | $ 5,250 |
| 9 | $ 4,875 | $ 7,875 |
| 12+ | $ 6,500 | $ 10,500 |
| Junior & Senior | $7,500 total | $12,500 total |
| (with a max of $5,500 Subsidized) | (with a max of $5,500 Subsidized) | |
| 6 | $ 3,750 | $ 6,250 |
| 9 | $ 5,625 | $ 9,375 |
| 12+ | $ 7,500 | $ 12,500 |
| Graduates | $20,500 Unsubsidized only | |
| Semester & Trimester | ||
| 4.5 | n/a | $ 11,275 |
| 6 | n/a | $ 13,530 |
| 9 | n/a | $ 20,500 |
| Quarter | ||
| 3 | n/a | $ 10,250 |
| 6 | n/a | $ 20,500 |
*Please note that at minimum, students need to be enrolled at least half-time per semester to receive any Federal Direct Loan funding.
See the chart below which details the number of credits for which a student must be enrolled per term to be considered half-time for financial aid purposes.
| Half Time Students | Term Enrollment |
| Undergraduate Students | 6 credits |
| Graduate Students (Semester/Trimester) | 4.5 credits |
| Graduate Students (Quarter) | 3 credits |