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Which degrees did the Trump administration reclassify as non-professional and when was the policy announced?
Executive summary
Available reporting shows the Trump administration issued at least two distinct moves affecting how degrees are treated in federal employment and higher education policy: a June 26, 2020 executive order that pushed federal hiring from degree-based to skills- and competency-based assessments (signed June 26, 2020) [1] [2], and an April 23, 2025 executive order aimed at overhauling accreditation and labeling many degree programs as poor value—claiming roughly 25% of bachelor’s and over 40% of master’s degrees deliver negative returns [3] [4]. Sources do not provide a single, consolidated list of specific degree titles reclassified as “non‑professional”; instead, they describe broad policy shifts and criteria changes [1] [3] [4].
1. Two different actions — different aims and dates
The Trump administration’s actions span separate policy goals and separate announcements: the 2020 executive order directed agencies to prioritize skills over college degrees in hiring, and was signed June 26, 2020 [1] [2]; the 2025 executive order on April 23, 2025 focused on accreditation reform and criticized many degrees as offering poor returns, citing statistics about bachelor’s and master’s programs [3] [4]. Reporting treats these as distinct initiatives rather than a single reclassification event [1] [3].
2. What the 2020 order actually did — “skills over degrees” in hiring
The June 26, 2020 executive order—touted as replacing degree‑based hiring with skills‑ and competency‑based hiring—directed federal agencies to remove arbitrary minimum education requirements where not legally necessary, aiming to reduce “credential inflation” so applicants without college degrees could compete on demonstrated skills [1] [2]. Coverage emphasizes process and hiring criteria changes rather than naming specific degrees that would lose “professional” status [1] [2].
3. What the 2025 accreditation order said — criticizing degree value, not naming every “non‑professional” program
The April 23, 2025 executive order on “Reforming Accreditation to Strengthen Higher Education” framed many undergraduate and graduate programs as offering negative returns—saying nearly 25% of bachelor’s degrees and over 40% of master’s degrees have negative return on investment—and directed reviews of accreditors and programs [3] [4]. The White House fact sheet singles out accreditor standards (including medical education accreditors) but does not provide a catalog of degrees newly labeled “non‑professional” in the supplied excerpts [3] [4].
4. Reporting gaps — no definitive list of reclassified degree titles in these sources
Available sources describe policy frameworks, statistics, and accreditation reviews but do not produce a definitive list of degrees that were reclassified as “non‑professional” or the exact mechanism that would legally reclassify particular degree titles [1] [3] [4]. If you are asking which specific degree names were reclassified, current reporting in the provided set does not mention that level of detail [1] [3] [4].
5. Competing perspectives and implications noted in coverage
Supporters framed the 2020 hiring push as fighting credential inflation and opening federal jobs to “Skilled Through Alternative Routes” workers; business outlets and tech companies were cited as allies of skills‑based hiring [2] [5]. Critics warned the broad 2025 accreditation and reclassification efforts could unduly target programs and extend political oversight into academic standards; some coverage links these moves to Project 2025 and broader conservative priorities about higher education [3] [6]. Both perspectives are present in the reporting cited [2] [3] [6].
6. Related personnel actions and broader workforce reclassification
Separate from degree valuation, the administration in April 2025 also moved to reclassify many federal employees (invoking Schedule F in earlier form) so policy‑oriented career workers could be moved into categories that make removal easier—an action described as expanding the pool of people considered involved in “policy” [7] [8]. That personnel reclassification is related to workforce management rather than academic degree classification, but it illustrates the administration’s parallel priorities on reshaping federal employment rules [7] [8].
7. What to do next if you need a specific list or legal text
If you want a precise list of degree programs definitively reclassified as “non‑professional” or the legal instrument that names particular degrees, those specifics are not present in the supplied reporting. To get that, consult the full executive orders, agency rulemaking documents, or subsequent Education Department/OPM guidance referenced by the April 23, 2025 and June 26, 2020 actions [1] [3] [4].
Limitations: This analysis uses only the provided sources and therefore cannot confirm developments or documents not cited here; the sources describe policy changes and statistics but do not publish a named roster of reclassified degree programs [1] [3] [4].