Nursing as a Professional Degree

As a part of its current rule-making, the Department of Education may use 1960s-era definitions of “professional” and “graduate” degrees to determine loan limits. This action stems from an intent to curb student loan debt and tuition costs as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Unfortunately, if the department uses these definitions, post-baccalaureate nursing students would only be eligible for half the amount of federal loans as graduate medical students.

Key Information

• The Department of Education’s Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee’s rulemaking to implement the student financial aid provisions under Public Law 119–21 released a proposed framework that omits post-baccalaureate nursing degrees from the regulatory definition of “professional degree”
• The proposed definition describes a professional degree as one that “signifies both completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession and a level of professional skill beyond that normally required for a bachelor’s degree” and that “generally requires professional licensure to begin practice.”
  • Post-baccalaureate nursing degrees satisfy these criteria: RNs must pass the National Council Licensure Examination to enter the profession; APRNs must have a graduate degree, such as an MSN or a DNP, and require national certification and state licensure to practice
• The classification of a professional degree vs. a graduate degree matters because the law states that students earning professional degrees may borrow up to $50,000 annually and $200,000 aggregate, while students earning graduate degrees have borrowing limits capped at $20,500 annually and $100,000 aggregate.

Track the latest updates with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Policy Watch: Support for Nursing as a Professional Degree.

Get Involved

The American Nurses Association is collecting signatures on a petition asking the Department of Education to include nursing in its proposed ‘professional degree’ program definition.

See the Petition

How is APNA involved?

• Ongoing engagement in meetings with the American Nurses Association and the Nursing Community Coalition to ensure that APNA leaders are well-informed and at the forefront of collaborative efforts to assist in this effort.
• December 8: APNA endorsed a letter to the Under Secretary of Education underscoring the importance of including post-baccalaureate nursing programs in the definition of professional degree programs.
• October 31: APNA signed on to a Nursing Community Coalition letter to the U.S. Department of Education, urging the Department’s Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee to explicitly include post-baccalaureate nursing programs in the regulatory definition of “professional degree programs” when implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
• August 25: APNA signed on to Nursing Community Coalition written comments submitted to the U.S. Department of Education urging it to consider the needs of current and future nurses when implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill. This includes requests that the department classify post-baccalaureate nursing programs under “professional” degree programs.

Published November 21, 2025; Updated December 8, 2025