Student loan arrears continued to escalate, with Associated Press reporting record default levels nationally and in Texas. As of the latest analysis, about 9.2 million borrowers are in default, up by 4.2 million since April 2025, and Texas accounts for more than 20% of borrowers in default, reflecting a growing wave of borrowers falling behind as payment rules change. The reporting ties the surge to the end of pandemic-era relief and a one-year buffer period that ended in fall 2024, with loans resuming default risk starting again in June 2025. Advocates warned that the outlook could worsen further as repayment structures change, including the elimination of the SAVE plan. For higher-education institutions and student-support leaders, the trend is a direct signal of downstream impacts on enrollment persistence, campus advising workloads, and institutional financial-aid counseling—especially for students who rely on federal aid and income-driven repayment options.