SRU to change how it counsels families on Parent PLUS loans
Slippery Rock University is planning to change the way it counsels families seeking undergraduate Parent PLUS loans after new proposed regulations set a cap.
Parent PLUS loans have historically been available to parents of dependent undergraduate students, if their federal loans do not cover expenses. The loan did not previously have an aggregate cap, which is the total that can be lent over a student’s college career, and could be borrowed for multiple students and multiple years.
If the Department of Education’s proposed regulations take effect July 1, Parent PLUS loans will have a cap of $20,000 per year per student with an aggregate amount of $65,000.
“I feel like we’re going to be left with some families who don’t have an option in their senior year,” said Alyssa Dobson, SRU’s director of financial aid and scholarships.
Dobson explained if a parent receives the loan and uses the full $20,000 each of the first three years their undergraduate student is enrolled, they will only have $5,000 left for senior year, since most undergraduate programs last four years.
She said SRU awarded 640 Parent PLUS loans in the fall 2024 and spring 2025 financial aid cycle. Of the 640 loans, only 20 issued were for more than $21,000, and only 43 were above $20,000.
Dobson said the impact to SRU students would be minimal with the majority receiving Parent PLUS loans lower than the cap each year, but that those who seek the additional support will need different advice.
“We’re changing we way we counsel our families,” Dobson said. “It’s going to put people in a really bad spot in their senior year.”
