On April 30 the Department of Education (ED) released its Reimaging and Improving Student Education final rule which implements provisions from H.R. 1 that change federal student loan programs.  

These changes include establishing new loan limits for students pursuing “graduate degrees” and “professional degrees.” Graduate students are limited to borrowing $20,500 per year or $100,000 over their lifetime and professional students are limited to borrowing $50,000 per year and $200,000 over their lifetime. Critically, the final rule adopts a limited definition of “professional degrees” for the purpose of accessing higher federal student loan borrowing limits.  Please find NRHA’s comment on the proposed rule here. 

NRHA is extremely disappointed with the Department’s decision to finalize its definition of “professional degree” as proposed. Beginning July 1, 2026, ED only considers the following degrees as professional: Pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine (MD and DO), optometry, podiatry, theology, and clinical psychology. The remainder of post-baccalaureate degrees are considered “graduate” and subject to lower student loan borrowing limits.  

This definition excludes many critical rural health profession programs, such as graduate nursing, physician assistant/associate, public health, physical therapy, and social work. Rural areas struggle to recruit and retain an adequate workforce to care for the population. Federal student loan programs help students from every community, including rural, to access health professions training and grow the workforce. Creating any new barriers to entry into these fields will worsen existing shortages in rural areas.   

In order to combat the Department’s final rule decision, NRHA urges Congress to pass the legislation that supports post-baccalaureate healthcare education for rural healthcare providers and workforce: 

• H.R. 6718, the Professional Student Degree Act, Reps. Lawler (R-NY), Bacon (R-NE), Bresnahan (R-PA), and Kiggans (R-VA). This bill would add additional degrees to the definition of “professional degree,” including physical therapy, nursing (MSN, DNP, or PhD), occupational therapy, physician assistant/associate, and social work.
• S. 4568/H.R. 8691, the Nursing is a Professional Degree Act, Reps. Kiggans (R-VA), Bergman (R-MI), Fitzpatrick (R-PA), and Bacon (R-NE). This bill would add all post-baccalaureate nursing degrees to the definition of “professional degree.”