The Department of Education’s decision to exclude several professions from being considered professional degree programs, most notably nursing, has drawn outcry from nurses and nursing groups. The declassification, which restricts funding for students seeking graduate education, is a part of the department’s implementation of various student loan-related measures. Experts and nurse advocacy groups note that the industry is already suffering from a nursing shortage.
Why will nursing be excluded?
As part of the Trump governance’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” the Grad PLUS program, which helped graduate and professional students secure funding for educational costs, is being eliminated. The bill also creates a new Repayment Assistance Plan, under which new annual loans for new borrowers are capped at $20,500 annually for graduate-level students and $50,000 a year for professional students.Once the new measures are implemented on July 1, 2026, students enrolled in professional degree programs will be restricted to a $200,000 lifetime cap, while non-professional students will be subject to a lifetime limit of $100,000.To clarify who had access to that money,the Department of Education determined the following programs as professional: medicine,pharmacy,dentistry,optometry,law,veterinary medicine,osteopathic medicine,podiatry,chiropractic,theology and clinical psychology. Nurse practitioners, along with physician assistants, audiologists and physical therapists, were omitted from that list. The goal of the changes is to ensure that borrowers will not face “insurmountable debt to finance degrees that do not pay off,” said Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent in a statement.
Proposed Federal Loan Policy Change Sparks Outcry from Nursing Organizations
A recent proposal by the Department of Education to reclassify nursing graduate programs has ignited a fierce debate,with nursing organizations expressing strong opposition and the department defending its position. The proposed change impacts federal student loan eligibility for advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs).
The American Nurses Association (ANA) released a press release outlining their concerns. Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, president of the ANA, stated that nurses are “the largest segment of the health care workforce and the backbone of our nation’s health system.” She argued that limiting access to funding for graduate education at a time of “historic nurse shortage and rising demands” would “threaten the very foundation of patient care.” The ANA emphasizes the crucial role APRNs play in providing “essential, high-quality care” – particularly in underserved communities where access to healthcare is limited.
patricia Pittman, a professor of health policy and management at George Washington University and director of the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity, described the move as a “gut punch for nursing” in an interview with Newsweek.She highlighted that education is the “single best way to retain nurses, especially in rural and underserved communities,” and that the reclassification is “deeply insulting to nurses who have fought so hard to be recognized for their critical contributions to health care.”
The Department of Education, though, defends its decision. Ellen Keast, Department of Education Press Secretary for Higher Education, told Newsweek the reaction is “fake news at its finest.” She asserted that the department has maintained a “consistent definition of what constitutes a professional degree for decades,” and that the current language “aligns with this historical precedent.” Keast further stated that the department’s action is a response to institutions that have been benefiting from “unlimited tuition rides on the taxpayer dime.”
Background & Clarification (Updated Information – November 26, 2025):
The controversy stems from the Department of Education’s re-evaluation of what constitutes a “professional degree” for the purposes of federal student loan programs. Historically, nursing graduate programs leading to APRN licensure have been categorized as professional degrees, qualifying students for certain loan benefits. The proposed change would reclassify these programs, potentially impacting loan forgiveness options and interest rates for current and future APRN students.
This issue has roots in policy debates dating back to the Trump administration, as newsweek reported in 2019. The current administration is now moving forward with a similar reclassification, arguing it aligns with long-standing definitions. However, nursing advocates contend that the definition has been applied differently in practice and that the change will disproportionately affect those pursuing advanced nursing education.
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