Excluding nursing from professional degree classification jeopardizes efforts to strengthen and expand the U.S. nursing workforce

SILVER SPRING, MD – November 10, 2025 – The American Nurses Association (ANA) is concerned by the Department of Education’s exclusion of nursing from the definition of “professional degree” programs under forthcoming federal loan eligibility rules. This will severely restrict access to critical funding for graduate nursing education, undermining efforts to grow and sustain the nursing workforce.

“Nurses make up the largest segment of the healthcare workforce and the backbone of our nation’s health system,” said Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, president of the American Nurses Association. “At a time when healthcare in our country faces a historic nurse shortage and rising demands, limiting nurses’ access to funding for graduate education threatens the very foundation of patient care. In many communities across the country, particularly in rural and underserved areas, advanced practice registered nurses ensure access to essential, high-quality care that would otherwise be unavailable. We urge the Department of Education to recognize nursing as the essential profession it is and ensure access to loan programs that make advanced nursing education possible.”

ANA encourages the Department to engage with nursing stakeholders and revise the “professional degree” definition to explicitly include nursing education pathways. Ensuring robust support for nursing education is essential to the future of safe, quality care delivery.