Controversial changes to the definition of a ‘professional’ degree were just blocked: What does it mean for student borrowing caps?
A federal judge has temporarily blocked a new Trump administration rule that would have severely limited how much certain graduate students can borrow to finance their education. To facilitate the new rule, the Department of Education (DOE) left nursing, teaching, social work, accounting, and other professions off a list of 11 fields that it said meet the requirements of “professional” degrees. The rule was set to take effect on July 1. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell pushed back, ruling that the change likely violated the Administrative Procedures Act, and that the administration didn’t have the authority to narrow the definition of what constitutes a “professional” degree. “By adopting the preexisting definition as it was in effect on a specific date, Congress removed any discretionary authority the Department may have had to narrow the definition for the purpose of determining federal loan caps,” Howell wrote in the ruling. Workers’ advocates fought the changes The judge’s decision comes after six associations, representing advanced practice nursing, therapy, public health, and education, filed lawsuits over the Trump caps, pressing that it would limit critical access to funding—which a huge portion of future nurses rely on when maintaining their degrees. The borrowing limits for “professional” degrees are set at $50,000 annually or $200,000 total. Those seeking other graduate degrees are capped at $20,500 annually or $100,000 total. Proponents of the rule said it will help bring down student debt, and the cost of graduate programs overall, as it will encourage institutions to bring down education costs. Nurses, social workers, educators, who were left off the administration’s list viewed the change differently. “Despite broad recognition of the complexity, rigor, and necessity of post-baccalaureate nursing education, the Department’s proposal defines professional programs so narrowly that nursing, th