How did the Department of Labor classify nursing occupations during the Trump presidency and were there changes?

1. What the Department of Education actually changed

In late 2025 the Department of Education issued language that no longer treats a set of advanced health and service credentials as “professional degrees.” Snopes summarizes the department’s list as excluding nursing (MSN, DNP), social work (MSW, DSW), public health (MPH, DrPH), physician assistant, occupational therapy, physical therapy, audiology, speech‑language pathology and counseling and therapy degrees ^[1]. Local and national reporting echoed that nursing programs and several allied‑health fields were not on the updated “professional” list used to determine graduate borrowing rules ^[2].

2. Why this classification matters for students and programs

The “professional” label historically has been consequential for loan eligibility and borrowing limits: the One Big Beautiful Bill eliminated or capped certain graduate loan programs (notably Grad PLUS) and tied borrowing availability to whether a program is classified as professional, meaning students in excluded programs face tighter borrowing limits or loss of Grad PLUS access ^{[1] [3]}. Multiple outlets and nursing groups warned that excluding nursing could reduce students’ access to funds needed for advanced practice and leadership pathways ^{[2] [3]}.

3. How nursing groups and advocates responded

Professional nursing organizations publicly criticized the move. Reporting cites statements from groups such as the American Nurses Association and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing expressing deep concern that the change would constrain funding for current and future nursing students and worsen workforce shortages ^{[2] [3] [4]}. Coverage in The Independent and other outlets reported vocal opposition from nursing leaders who argued the policy undermines efforts to expand the health workforce ^[5].

4. Where reporting overlaps and where it diverges

Multiple mainstream outlets and aggregators consistently list nursing among the excluded fields and link the reclassification to the One Big Beautiful Bill’s loan provisions ^{[2] [3] [4]}. Fact‑checkers like Snopes document the same Department of Education list and place the change in the context of the elimination/capping of Grad PLUS ^[1]. Differences in coverage mainly lie in emphasis—some pieces stress the immediate student‑loan mechanics, while others foreground workforce and political implications—but the underlying factual claims about which fields were excluded are consistent across the provided reporting ^{[1] [2] [3]}.

5. What the sources do not establish or explicitly refute

Available sources do not mention that nursing was categorically always treated as a “professional degree” in federal regulation prior to this action; at least one article notes the historical regulatory definition was broad and not strictly prescriptive ^[6]. The provided reporting does not supply the Department of Education’s full text or administrative record that would show the precise legal wording or administrative rationale beyond implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill provisions ^[1]. If you want the exact regulatory language or the department’s formal legal justification, those documents are not included in the current sources ^[1].

6. Practical implications and next steps for affected students and schools

News outlets and nursing organizations warn that hundreds of thousands of nursing students in entry‑level and graduate programs could face different borrowing rules; several reports cite enrollment numbers for BSN/ADN students and emphasize potential downstream effects on advanced practice pipelines ^{[6] [4]}. The practical next steps are administrative: institutions and students will need to consult their financial aid offices about new borrowing caps and alternative financing, and professional groups say they will lobby the department to restore nursing’s status or seek legislative fixes ^{[2] [3]}.

7. Bottom line for readers seeking certainty

Based on the reporting and fact‑checking available, the Department of Education under the Trump administration did reclassify a range of graduate and professional programs—explicitly including nursing master’s and doctoral nursing degrees—as not “professional” for the purpose of the department’s loan rules, and that change is tied to One Big Beautiful Bill loan provisions that restrict Grad PLUS and impose caps ^{[1] [2]}. For the full legal text, administrative rationale, and any subsequent reversals or litigation, consult the department’s rulemaking documents and official notices—those primary documents are not present in the current reporting ^[1].