WASHINGTON – In a significant development affecting graduate education funding, students pursuing degrees in nursing, physical therapy, and several other fields are now eligible to access higher federal student loan limits. This change comes in response to a federal judge’s ruling that blocked part of a previous Trump administration regulation which imposed lower loan caps on these essential programs.
On Monday, the U.S. Education Department announced a revised rule aimed at complying with the judge’s order from last week. Officials indicated that this is a temporary adjustment as they continue to contest the original regulation in court. Under the former rule, only certain fields like medicine and law were classified as “professional programs,” while nursing and similar disciplines were notably excluded.
Despite their disagreement with the judge’s decision, Education Department officials, including Undersecretary Nicholas Kent, affirmed their commitment to follow the ruling while simultaneously advocating for the original definition of professional programs. Kent stated, “We will continue to make the case that the definition is both lawful and appropriate.”
This recent legal shift is seen as a short-term victory for the eight groups that filed the lawsuit, which included representatives from the nursing, therapy, and speech-language pathology fields. However, the Education Department’s strict adherence to the judge’s order means that some degree programs have been removed from the professional category, leading to lower loan limits for their students. Notably, theology studies have been significantly affected, with many theology programs now classified as non-professional.
The newly established rule, effective Wednesday, stems from a student loan overhaul introduced in the Trump administration’s tax bill last year. Under this framework, programs designated as professional degrees are allowed federal loan caps of $200,000, while other graduate programs face a limit of $100,000. The intent behind these caps was to mitigate rising student debt and tuition costs.
Advocates for graduate students emphasized that the caps would force many to reconsider their educational pursuits or resort to riskier private loans. With the costs of certain graduate nursing programs, particularly in high-demand areas such as nurse anesthesia, often exceeding $100,000, the implications of these loan limits are profound.
In their notification to universities, the Education Department expressed confidence that the original loan cap rules would ultimately be upheld in court. The amended regulations are expected to remain in effect during the judge’s preliminary stay, although the department cautioned that further changes could arise as the litigation unfolds.
Previously, the original rule identified approximately a dozen programs as professional, a classification that was not meant to diminish their significance but rather to adhere to a technical definition established in the 1960s. In addition to law and medicine, this designation included fields such as theology, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, and clinical psychology.
The revised rule expands the list of professional programs to include 29 specific degrees, such as the master of science in nursing, doctor of nursing practice, and doctor of nurse anesthesia practice. Other newly recognized programs include degrees in physical therapy, athletic training, speech-language pathology, and physician associate studies.
Conversely, the department’s latest communication identifies about 25 programs that have been reclassified as non-professional. This list includes applied psychology and pharmaceutical sciences, although the doctor of pharmacy degree remains under the professional category.
The recent court ruling, which blocked portions of the Education Department’s definition, was delivered by U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, who characterized the interpretation as “misguided” and inconsistent with a long-standing definition set forth by Congress.
The Education Department’s original definition outlined several criteria to determine whether degrees qualify as professional programs, including the duration of study, licensure requirements, and the nature of employment outcomes. The criteria specified that professional degrees typically require around six years of education and must lead to independent practice without the necessity of supervision by another professional with greater qualifications.
Additionally, a separate lawsuit filed by a coalition of states led by Democratic officials is currently pending, challenging the loan caps imposed by the Education Department.
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Associated Press Writer Heather Hollingsworth contributed to this report from Kansas City.
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