VA HB1310

Requires the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) to evaluate how recent federal changes to graduate and professional student loan programs—including revised borrowing limits and elimination of Grad PLUS loans—affect in-state students at public and eligible private nonprofit institutions

Mandates identification of all affected graduate programs in Virginia and data collection on enrolled in-state students, disaggregated by discipline, demographic group, and geographic region

Requires assessment of workforce pipeline impacts in fields requiring graduate education for licensure, including nursing, health professions, education, behavioral health, social work, public health, and engineering

Directs SCHEV to convene an advisory group including representatives from public universities, HBCUs, health licensing boards, the Department of Education, graduate program directors, and at least one current graduate student

Report with findings and recommendations for state-level solutions (such as forgivable loan programs or employer partnerships) due to the Governor and General Assembly by November 1, 2026