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Which countries' higher-education authorities led efforts to reclassify degrees as professional?
Executive summary
The U.S. Department of Education has led a recent effort to narrow which post‑baccalaureate programs qualify as “professional degrees,” proposing to shrink long lists of eligible programs and thus limit access to higher federal loan caps for many fields, including nursing, public health, and other health professions [1] [2]. National higher‑education and professional associations — including the Association of American Universities and the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health — are publicly warning that the draft regulations will exclude numerous advanced healthcare and education degrees and could reduce access to graduate study [2] [3].
1. Who is driving the reclassification: Washington’s Education Department takes center stage
The primary actor in the recent reclassification push is the U.S. Department of Education, which convened a committee (the RISE negotiations and related rulemaking process) to produce draft regulations implementing loan provisions of H.R.1 and to redefine “professional degree” eligibility under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) [1] [2]. Inside Higher Ed reported that Under Secretary Nicholas Kent presented the department’s latest proposal, which narrows the criteria programs must meet to be treated as professional for loan‑cap purposes [1]. The Department’s drafts and committee negotiations are therefore the proximate source of the reclassification effort [1] [2].
2. Which degree categories are explicitly targeted in reporting
Reporting and advocacy materials list health, education, and social‑service fields among those that would be affected. Multiple outlets and social posts cite nursing (MSN, DNP), public health (MPH, DrPH), social work (MSW, DSW), physician assistant, occupational and physical therapy, audiology, speech‑language pathology, counseling and therapy degrees, and many master’s programs in business and engineering as proposed removals from the “professional” list [4] [5]. News coverage and advocacy statements emphasize nursing and public health as high‑profile examples of programs that may lose professional‑degree status under the department’s draft rules [6] [3] [7].
3. How the reclassification is being justified in the department’s proposal
The Department’s proposal ties “professional” status to whether a post‑baccalaureate program “requires a level of skill beyond that of a bachelor’s degree” and other criteria designed to limit the universe of eligible programs to a much smaller set than before; Inside Higher Ed described the department’s latest plan as narrowing the list of programs that can access the highest loan caps and noted the department presented a reduced list compared with earlier drafts [1]. Official presentations framed the change as an implementation choice under the new statutory loan provisions [1].
4. Who is pushing back and why: universities and professional associations raise alarms
Leading research universities and field associations are opposing the change on workforce and access grounds. The Association of American Universities warned that the new draft regulations will limit which programs count as “professional,” likely reducing access to advanced degrees and worsening shortages in critical professions such as medicine and nursing [2]. The Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health explicitly said excluding MPH and DrPH degrees would risk undermining the public‑health workforce and urged institutions to submit public comments during the rulemaking period [3].
5. What’s at stake: loans, workforce pipelines, and downstream consequences
Advocates emphasize direct financial impacts — loss of eligibility for higher federal loan limits for students in excluded programs — and downstream effects on workforce supply. AAU noted the $200,000 professional‑degree loan cap and warned that narrowing eligibility could make advanced degrees unaffordable and exacerbate shortages, citing medical school cost data as an example of how loan caps interact with program costs [2]. Nursing organizations and reporting highlighted that graduate nursing students could lose access to higher federal loan limits if nursing is excluded [6] [7].
6. Limits of the record and competing viewpoints
Current reporting focuses on the U.S. Department of Education’s draft regulations and reactions from U.S. universities and professional groups; available sources do not mention other countries’ higher‑education authorities leading similar reclassification efforts or any international coordinated reclassification (not found in current reporting). The Department’s proposal is still in rulemaking stages (a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and public comment process was expected), meaning final policy could change after negotiations and comments [3] [1].
7. What to watch next
Watch for the formal Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the 30‑day public comment window referenced by ASPPH, and any final regulatory text from the Department of Education; these steps will determine which degrees ultimately retain “professional” status and the concrete loan limits applied [3] [1]. Also monitor statements from nursing, public‑health, and higher‑education groups that may quantify affected student populations and push legal or political responses [6] [2].