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A federal judge has temporarily preserved access to advanced nursing education by blocking part of a U.S. Department of Education policy that nursing organizations argued would create new financial barriers for students pursuing graduate nursing degrees. The decision temporarily blocks the Department’s revised definition of a “professional degree,” preserving graduate nursing students’ access to the higher federal student loan borrowing limits while the legal challenge proceeds.
The ruling comes just days before new federal student loan caps established under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act are scheduled to take effect in July.
Beginning July 1, students enrolled in graduate degree programs face lower federal borrowing limits than students enrolled in designated professional degree programs. Under the new law, graduate programs are subject to annual and aggregate borrowing caps, while professional degree programs qualify for higher annual and lifetime borrowing limits. The Department of Education’s revised definition excluded graduate nursing, along with physical therapy, physician assistant, public health, speech-language pathology, and several other healthcare disciplines, from the higher borrowing tier.
That distinction prompted concern among nursing organizations, which argued that lower federal borrowing limits could force some students to delay or forgo graduate nursing degrees or rely on more expensive private loans.
Eight healthcare organizations filed suit challenging the Department’s definition of a professional degree, arguing that the agency exceeded its authority by excluding graduate nursing and other healthcare professions from the higher borrowing tier.
The American Association of Nurse Practitioners, one of the organizations involved in the lawsuit, welcomed the court’s decision.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, the organization called the ruling “an important step for NP students, the future health care workforce and the patients who depend on them.”
In temporarily blocking the Department of Education’s revised definition of a “professional degree,” U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell found that the agency added “more stringent requirements” that were not authorized by Congress. Among those changes was a requirement that professional degree holders “must work free from another professional’s supervision.”
Howell said Congress did not give the Department the authority to adopt those additional requirements and warned that limiting educational opportunities could be “detrimental to the public, particularly in underserved communities that may face a shortage of healthcare and other critical professional services.”
The ruling does not stop the new federal student loan caps. Instead, it temporarily blocks only the Department of Education’s revised definition of a professional degree while the legal challenge proceeds.
The Department of Education said in a written statement that it is “reviewing the order and will take appropriate action.” The agency has previously defended the loan caps, saying they encourage colleges and universities to lower tuition.
A separate lawsuit filed by a coalition of Democratic-led states challenging the loan caps also remains pending.
For now, graduate nursing students remain eligible for the higher federal student loan borrowing limits while the legal challenge over the Department of Education’s revised definition of a professional degree continues.
