Which degrees and disciplines were specifically listed in the 2025 non-professional reclassification memo or regulation?

1. What the question asked versus what public reporting actually lists

You asked which degrees and disciplines were “specifically listed” in the 2025 reclassification memo/regulation. Available items in the reporting are mixed: some pieces quote the existing regulation’s illustrative examples—Pharmacy (Pharm.D.), Dentistry (D.D.S.)—while other coverage describes a new Department text that designates “eleven primary programs” and some doctoral programs as the only fields that qualify as professional; none of the provided excerpts publish a single, complete, authoritative list of every degree label in that final proposal ^{[2] [1] [4]}.

2. Examples named in the existing regulatory definition

Coverage of the existing regulatory definition (the text the department used as a baseline) explicitly lists examples including Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) and Dentistry (D.D.S.) as illustrative professional degrees ^{[2] [5]}. Reporting cites those as part of the pre-existing definition the bill or rule referenced when setting higher loan caps ^{[2] [5]}.

3. The department’s new draft: a short, restricted list of fields

Reporting from the Association of American Universities and Inside Higher Ed states that the Department-convened committee agreed to recognize only 11 primary programs—and some doctoral programs—as professional under the new regulatory text, cutting the universe from roughly 2,000 programs to fewer than 600 ^{[1] [3] [4]}. Inside Higher Ed adds that the proposal generally requires programs to be doctoral-level (with a narrow exception for a Master of Divinity) to qualify as professional ^[4].

4. Which common professional fields reporting says would be excluded

Multiple outlets and social posts list or warn that many healthcare and allied-health degrees—advanced nursing degrees (MSN, DNP), physician assistant programs, occupational therapy, physical therapy, audiology, speech-language pathology—along with education, social work, public health, counseling and certain business and engineering master’s programs would likely lose “professional” status under the proposed definition ^{[6] [7] [3]}. The AAU/other coverage specifically warns that physician assistant programs, advanced nursing degrees, occupational therapy and audiology are among the essential healthcare professions that would lose status under the draft ^[3].

5. Where the social-media lists came from and competing explanations

Several social posts circulated long lists of degrees said to be reclassified (nursing, social work, public health, physician assistant, OT/PT, business master’s, engineering master’s, etc.). Reporting and watchdog groups caution that some of those lists mix the Department of Education draft with unrelated Department of Labor classification changes; one thread noted that a DOL reclassification related to labor/immigration statistics (finalized July 1, 2025) has been conflated with ED’s proposal ^[7]. Those posts are not themselves primary regulatory texts and may overstate scope ^{[6] [7]}.

6. The functional criteria the department is using

Inside Higher Ed and NASFAA explain the proposed ED test is not simply degree name but a compound test: the program must require a level of skill beyond a bachelor’s degree and, in the draft, typically be a doctoral-level degree (again with the Master of Divinity exception); additionally, NASFAA notes programs that don’t share a 4-digit CIP code with one of the eleven designated fields may be excluded even if similar in practice ^{[4] [5]}.

7. Known numerical impacts and institutional concerns

The AAU, NASFAA, and other higher‑education groups flag the practical effect: the rule cuts professional programs to about 11 fields and some doctoral programs, reducing the roster from ~2,000 to under 600 programs and potentially narrowing who can access the higher loan limits tied to “professional” status—raising worries about access to advanced healthcare training and other fields ^{[1] [3] [5]}.

8. Limitations and what the sources do not provide

None of the provided sources publish the department’s final, verbatim list of every reclassified degree name in a single, definitive table or memo excerpt; available reporting instead summarizes the draft’s approach, names examples, and reports stakeholder reactions. Therefore, a complete, authoritative list of every specific degree label in the 2025 regulatory text is not found in the current reporting ^{[2] [1] [4]}.

9. Practical takeaway and how to verify further

To confirm an exhaustive list you should consult the Department of Education’s proposed rule/regulatory text or the official Federal Register notice; the current coverage indicates clear narrowing to roughly 11 fields plus some doctoral programs and warns many healthcare, education, and allied‑health master’s programs would be excluded from “professional” status under the draft ^{[1] [4] [3]}. Available sources do not mention a complete, final list in a single public excerpt ^{[2] [5]}.