Is Nursing a professional degree?
Nursing isn't not a professional field, but the Trump administration's Department of Education reclassified advanced nursing degrees (MSN, DNP) as standard graduate degrees instead of "professional degrees," limiting federal loan amounts under the new "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (OBBBA), which only allows higher caps for a few specific fields like medicine and law, creating financial hurdles for nurses seeking advanced education and exacerbating the nursing shortage, impacting roles like Nurse Practitioners (NPs).
What Changed?
Loan Limits: The definition of a "professional degree" determines higher federal loan limits (around $200k total) versus standard graduate limits (around $100k total).
Exclusion: Nursing (MSN, DNP, PhD) was excluded from the new, narrow list of federally recognized professional degrees, which now focuses on Medicine, Dentistry, Law, etc..
Legislation: This stems from the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (OBBBA) signed by President Trump, with implementation around July 1, 2026.
Why It Matters (Impacts):
Financial Burden: Advanced practice nurses face much higher education costs with lower borrowing caps, potentially creating $100,000 less in available loans.
Worsens Shortage: It makes advanced education harder to afford, potentially limiting the supply of NPs, educators, and CRNAs, worsening the existing nursing shortage.
Underserved Areas: It hinders nurses from getting advanced degrees needed for roles in rural/underserved areas, as private loans (not qualifying for forgiveness) become the only option.
Key Distinction:
This is a federal loan/financial distinction, not a judgment on nursing's importance or practice. It changes how much money nursing students can borrow for advanced degrees, not the degree's validity or licensure.