We need your help! The Department of Education is currently undergoing a rulemaking process that would significantly impact the loan amounts available to post-baccalaureate nursing students, and we need to make sure that Members of Congress are aware of these changes and understand their impact on the future nursing workforce.

The Department of Education recently completed negotiated rulemaking meetings with the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee to inform how the Department will implement changes to student financial aid provisions included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21). Negotiators for the RISE Committee deliberated new financial aid policies, including the definitions of “graduate” and “professional” degree programs, a distinction that will severely impact the federal loan amounts available to nursing students.

AACN is the leading voice urging the inclusion of nursing as a “professional” degree. Unfortunately, at the end of the RISE Committee meetings this month, the definition of “professional” degrees did not include post-baccalaureate nursing education. As a result, students enrolled in these nursing programs will be eligible for significantly lower annual and lifetime loan limits compared to students in “professional” programs ($20,500 annually and $100,000 in total borrowing for “graduate” degrees, compared to $50,000 annually and $200,000 in total for “professional” degrees). If not corrected, this exclusion would have direct financial, workforce, and public health implications as nursing students potentially face the decision to take out high-interest, private loans or abandon advanced practice education altogether. These proposed changes are not yet finalized.

As we wait for the Department of Education to publish the proposed rule and open a formal comment period in the coming weeks, we need to make sure that Members of Congress are aware of these changes and understand their impact on our nursing schools, faculty, students, and the future health workforce, especially in rural communities.

Contact your Senators and Representative today and encourage them to reach out to the Department of Education to request that they explicitly include post-baccalaureate nursing programs, as outlined in the “Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences” series Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) codes (Series 51), in the regulatory definition of “professional” degree programs.

As we continue to actively engage in this implementation process, we appreciate your advocacy on this time-sensitive request. Please make your voice heard today!