ANA Leads Petition Calling on DoED to Recognize Nursing as a Professional Degree

Image source: ANA Petition

After the news dropped that the Department of Education, under the implementation of President Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (OBBBA), plans to continue to exclude graduate nursing from the federal definition of "professional degree" programs in 2026, nurses may be wondering what comes next and what they can do.

While the news has made waves, there are a few important key points to clarify and action steps that nurses should be aware of. 

Has the Bill Impacting Nursing Gone Through Yet?

Technically speaking, the OBBBA was signed into law on July 4, 2025. However, not all aspects of the bill went into immediate effect. 

The parts of the bill affecting how graduate degrees are classified for federal loan purposes, for instance, are not scheduled to go into effect until July 1, 2026. That means that while the bill has passed, the changes have not technically gone into effect yet. 

What does that mean?

That means that there is still time to advocate against them, which is exactly what nearly every leading nursing organization is focused on right now.

The U.S. Department of Education recently clarified that this change is an administrative distinction for loan limits and not a value judgment about nursing, emphasizing that most nursing students will not be impacted. Nurse.org covered key points about the new fact sheet here. 

What Nurses Can Do

The American Nurses Association (ANA) has listed all of the nursing organizations that are urging Congress to reconsider the decision to remove nursing from its list of professional degrees. 

Some of the organizations include:

• The American College of Nurse-Midwives
• American Organization of Nursing Leadership
• American Association of the College of Nursing
• American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
• National League for Nursing
• Orthodox Jewish Nurses Association
• National Association of Neonatal Nurses
• Emergency Nurses Association

The ANA has started a petition that nurses can sign to "call on the Department of Education to revise the proposed definition of 'professional degrees' to explicitly include nursing." 

"Nurses are the backbone of healthcare in the U.S., yet the Department of Education may use 1960s-era definitions of 'professional' and 'graduate' degrees to determine loan limits, leading to the further erosion of the nursing workforce," the ANA declares. "This move stems from an effort to rein in student loan debt and tuition costs as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act; however, it means that post-baccalaureate nursing students would only be eligible for half the amount of federal loans as graduate medical students."

Nurses can sign the petition directly on the ANA's website and be subscribed to Action Alerts for updates about the petition, bill, and other efforts they can get involved in. 

Nurses React 

While nurses are getting involved to hopefully change the decision to remove graduate nursing degrees from the 'professional' category and thus decrease their loan borrowing limits for students, there has been a lot of reaction to the news.

Some people have reacted with frustration, while others have taken a more humorous approach. For instance, even The Onion got in on the responses, putting out a satirical article on the White House classifying nursing as a "hobby."

"While those seeking degrees in veterinary medicine, law, and podiatry will still have access to the full financing available to future professionals, our department will henceforth limit loans for those Americans simply blowing off a little steam by attending nursing school in between shifts at Buffalo Wild Wings,” the faux article explained.

"When they hand me a paycheck it’s honestly offensive, I’m a nurse for the love of the game. I just do some CPR every now and then to de-stress, yknow?" wrote an Instagram commenter. 

There has also been some online discussion about if the reclassification could impact the price and access of graduate nursing degrees. Some proponents of the bill have argued that by decreasing the amount of federal aid available to obtain graduate nursing degrees, the schools will have to lower the cost of said degrees as a result.

However, not everyone is convinced that will actually happen.

Source: Instagram

The exclusion of graduate nursing degrees from the federal definition of "professional degree" programs raises significant concerns for the nursing profession's future. With federal student loan limits potentially restricting access to critical funding, the path to advanced nursing education could become more challenging, especially for those pursuing NP, MSN, CRNA, and DNP programs.

Nurses and nursing organizations must remain engaged and vocal in advocating for recognition and support to ensure the nursing workforce can grow and meet the nation's healthcare needs. Signing petitions, staying informed through official channels, and participating in advocacy efforts can help protect the profession and the vital role nurses play in health care today and tomorrow.

 

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