Several associations have argued for months that nursing programs should be subject to a higher loan cap only available to the degrees that the Education Department designates as professional.
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A recent change to a House bill that funds the Education Department could allow master’s- and doctoral-level nursing programs access to higher levels of federal student borrowing.
Starting July 1, nursing students and most other graduate students will only be able to borrow $20,500 per year, under a new rule from the Education Department. Meanwhile, students in a select group of 11 programs, including optometry, medicine and law, have access to $50,000 per year. Various colleges and professional associations have argued that ED’s decision to limit the higher loan caps to handful of programs will exacerbate workforce shortages in critical areas such as health care.
The budget amendment, which advanced out of committee Tuesday, is attempting to address those concerns. But even if it survives the House, Senate and President Trump, it wouldn’t take effect until Oct. 1 at the earliest, and Congress has historically failed to pass a federal budget by then.
