Loan Cap Changes May Restrict Funding for Advanced Nursing Degrees

Written By Lexx Thornton

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) is moving forward with a regulatory framework that has alarmed major nursing organizations, as it threatens to severely restrict federal loan access for students pursuing advanced nursing degrees. The changes, stemming from the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), seek to simplify the student loan system and impose new borrowing limits, but they have inadvertently excluded post-baccalaureate nursing programs from the definition of a “professional degree.” 

The heart of the controversy lies in how the ED’s Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee defined a “professional degree program.” This classification determines eligibility for higher annual and aggregate federal loan caps. 

Under the new law, which is set to take effect for new borrowers in July 2026, the current Graduate PLUS program will be eliminated, and new federal loan caps will be imposed: 

1. Graduate (Non-Professional) Programs: Capped at $20,500 annually and $100,000 aggregate (including undergraduate loans). 
2. Professional Programs: Capped at $50,000 annually and $200,000 aggregate. 

The ED’s current proposed definition of a professional degree program is so narrow that it excludes advanced nursing programs—including the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), and research-focused PhDs—from qualifying for the higher, $200,000 aggregate limit. Nursing programs fall outside the required Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) codes that group medicine, dentistry, and law. 

 Leading organizations like the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and the American Nurses Association (ANA) have voiced deep concern, arguing that this exclusion will cripple the pipeline for the advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs)—such as nurse practitioners (NPs), nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), and nurse midwives—who are vital to the U.S. healthcare system, particularly in primary care and underserved communities.  

Graduate-level nursing education, especially for APRN roles, often involves programs that cost between $150,000 and $200,000. Limiting federal borrowing to $100,000 would force students to finance the remaining cost through high-interest private loans, or potentially abandon their education plans entirely. 

The ANA stated that at a time of a historic nurse shortage and rising demands on the healthcare system, restricting funding threatens the foundation of patient care. Stakeholders are currently preparing to comment during the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking phase, urging the Department of Education to revise the definition to recognize nursing as the essential professional program it is.