Nursing education—and the future of our healthcare workforce—is at risk.

A recent rule from the Department of Education excludes post-baccalaureate nursing programs from the definition of a “professional degree,” significantly reducing access to federal student loans for nurses pursuing advanced education. 

H.R. 8691 / S. 4568—the Nursing is a Professional Degree Act—addresses this issue by restoring nursing to the federal definition of a professional degree under the Higher Education Act.

If enacted, this legislation would:

• Ensure advanced nursing degrees (e.g., MSN, DNP, PhD) are recognized as professional degrees
• Preserve access to adequate federal student loan funding for nursing students
• Help prevent new barriers to graduate nursing education at a time of growing workforce shortages

Without this fix, nursing students could face significantly lower borrowing limits, restricting their ability to complete advanced training and exacerbating the healthcare workforce shortage across the country. 

For oncology care and other complex specialties, advanced nursing education is critical to:

• Ensure safe, high-quality patient care
• Support specialty certification and advanced practice roles
• Strengthen the pipeline of nurse educators and clinical leaders