On July 1, the Department of Education (ED) issued a final rule implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s (OBBBA, P.L. 119-21) new earnings-based accountability system, replacing the Gainful Employment and Financial Value Transparency frameworks with a universal transparency system (Student Tuition and Transparency System or “STATS”) and a new accountability framework that applies to all Title IV programs, including graduate, professional, and MD programs. Under the rule, institutions must report program-level cost, aid, completion, and outcomes data, while the department will assess graduate program earnings against bachelor’s degree benchmarks using state, field-of-study, and national comparisons. Earnings will be measured four years after graduation.
In a May 20 letter (PDF) in response to the proposed rule, the AAMC raised concerns about how MD programs would be evaluated and urged the department to account for physicians’ delayed earning trajectories during residency training. However, in the final rule, the department specified that there will be no adjustment of the measurement window for residency or fellowship training [refer to Washington Highlights, May 22].
- Washington Highlights