Tell the Department of Education: Nursing degrees are professional degrees!
This story appears in the February 2026 edition of The Washington Nurse.
The U.S. Department of Education has officially proposed a new rule excluding graduate nursing programs from being considered “professional degrees.” This would limit nurses preparing for advanced practice, leadership, and faculty roles to borrowing $20,500 in a year or $100,000 in total. Students in several other programs, including medicine, law, and theology, would be considered “professional” students and could borrow up to $50,000 in a year or $200,000 in total.
Nurses who are advancing their education must be able to finance it. Without sufficient access to student loans, the nursing workforce — and the preparation of new nurses to enter the workforce — can be severely impacted. Many nurses will be forced to turn to private lenders at high interest rates and unfavorable repayment terms.
Nurses must tell the Department of Education that nursing is a profession — the largest health profession in the U.S.
Public comments are due March 2, and the American Nurses Association has provided an easy-to-use form. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was filed Jan. 30, starting the 30-comment period.