Public backlash erupts after the Trump administration removes a popular college degree from the “professional” category

Outrage Over Nursing Degree Reclassification
People across the country are furious after the Department of Education removed a popular college course from its list of professional degrees.

Under President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, students in “professional degree” programs can borrow up to $200,000. All other students face a $100,000 loan cap.

However, the department excluded nursing from the professional category—a move that immediately sparked concern and backlash from healthcare groups.

A Decision That Alarms Healthcare Leaders
More than 260,000 students are currently enrolled in Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs, while another 42,000 pursue Associate Degrees in Nursing. Critics warn the new classification could reduce the number of future nurses across the country.

Nursing organizations quickly voiced their anger.
“Nursing is the backbone of the healthcare structure in the United States,” said Dr. Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, president of the American Nursing Association. She warned that the nation is already short tens of thousands of nurses. “This is going to stop nurses from going to school to be teachers for other nurses.”

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing echoed that concern. The group argued that removing nursing from the professional category “disregards decades of progress” and contradicts the department’s own definition of programs that lead directly to licensure and practice. They also warned that finalizing the proposal would have a “devastating” impact on the already strained nursing workforce.

Department of Education Defends Its Stance
Although it’s unclear whether nursing has ever officially been labeled a professional degree, the classification now directly affects student loan limits—making the change especially significant.

Despite widespread criticism, the Department of Education stood by its decision.
Spokesperson Ellen Keast told Newsweek that the department has used a consistent definition for decades. She added that institutions helped craft the language and accused some schools of “crying wolf” over regulations “that never existed” because “their unlimited tuition ride on the taxpayer dime is over.”

Who Still Qualifies as a Professional?
The department continues to classify the following fields as professional:
medicine, pharmacy, law, dentistry, osteopathic medicine, optometry, podiatry, chiropractic, veterinary medicine, theology, and clinical psychology.

Meanwhile, several fields—including physician assistants, physical therapists, educators, social workers, audiologists, architects, and accountants—did not make the list.

Related Posts

“My Husband Left for a Business Trip — Minutes Later, My Six-Year-Old Whispered, ‘Mommy… We Have to Run. Now.’”

My husband Derek had just left for a business trip when my six-year-old daughter tugged my sleeve with trembling fingers and whispered words that would shatter everything…

My husband kissed my forehead and said, “France. Just a short business trip.”

My husband kissed my forehead and said, “France. Just a short business trip.” A few hours later, as I stepped out of the operating room, my heart…

My eight-year-old son was beaten nearly to death in his grandfather’s driveway while three grown men laughed and held him down.

My eight-year-old son was beaten nearly to death in his grandfather’s driveway while three grown men laughed and held him down. That sentence still does not feel…

Never Had To Speak Until One Day Everything Changed

Wyatt came downstairs with that half-smile he had been wearing since he was seventeen, the one that meant he had already decided how the room was going…

I Was the Only One at My Grandpa’s Funeral Until a General Saw His Ring and Asked Me One Question

The Quiet Man As told by his granddaughter My grandfather was the quietest person in every room he ever entered. Not shy, not withdrawn, not socially inept…

My Parents Threw Me Out at 16 Until Years Later They Came Begging Without Knowing Who I Had Become

The Inheritance I was staring at the email when I realized my hands were shaking. The message glowed on my monitor, framed by the wide glass walls…