Graduate nursing students are borrowing federal loans this fall under a temporary arrangement that four federal lawsuits will settle. As of Oct. 14, 2026, the Education Department treats the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and nurse anesthesia doctorate (DNAP) as professional degrees for loan purposes, but only because a federal judge in Washington paused the department's narrower definition on June 24. The nursing professional degree question is now before judges in Washington, Maryland and Massachusetts, and the last scheduled brief is due Dec. 4.

The stakes are concrete. Under the 2025 budget law, a graduate student can borrow up to $20,500 a year in Direct Unsubsidized Loans ($100,000 in total), while a professional student can borrow up to $50,000 a year ($200,000 in total). Grad PLUS loans are gone for new borrowers either way. This nursing professional degree tracker will be updated as filings and rulings arrive, with each change logged at the bottom.

How the Nursing Professional Degree Fight Started

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed July 4, 2025, set the new caps and defined "professional degree" by pointing to an existing regulation, 34 C.F.R. 668.2. That definition covers a degree that marks completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a profession and a level of skill beyond a bachelor's degree, with licensure generally required. It lists examples such as pharmacy, medicine and law.

The department's RISE final rule, published May 1, 2026, and effective July 1, added further conditions and limited the professional category to degrees in 11 fields. Nursing was not one of them. The rule said MSN, DNP and DNAP programs "may satisfy the operative definition's three-part test" but excluded them anyway, citing supervision requirements and state-by-state differences in nurse practice authority.

What the June 24 Stay Did and Did Not Do

In American Association of Nurse Practitioners v. McMahon (D.D.C. No. 1:26-cv-01780), consolidated with a physician assistant case, Judge Beryl A. Howell found the challengers likely to win their claim that the department could not rewrite the definition Congress adopted. Her order:

Did preliminarily set aside and stay part (i) of the rule's definition, including its doctoral-level, six-year, licensure and CIP code conditions, plus the preamble's requirement that a profession be free from supervision.
Did not stay the rule's list of 11 fields, block the statutory loan caps, bring back Grad PLUS or order the department to treat any specific degree as professional.

In her opinion, Howell wrote that the case "cannot remedy plaintiffs' primary frustration over the elimination of uncapped borrowing" and called the classification of individual degrees "a question best reserved for the agency to consider in the first instance." As of Oct. 14, the public docket shows no notice of appeal from the government.

Which Nursing Programs Count for Now

Federal Student Aid responded on June 29 with Electronic Announcement GENERAL-26-42, updated July 10. Its interim list of programs treated as professional includes three nursing codes from the federal Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP):

51.3801 Registered Nursing (MSN)
51.3804 Nurse Anesthetist (DNAP)
51.3818 Nursing Practice (DNP)

The July 10 update extended MSN and DNP status to any program in the same four-digit group, 51.38, that awards the same credential. The nursing PhD is not on the list. The department calls these "interim administrative designations" that "may change as litigation in the case proceeds" and says it remains confident its rule is lawful. For now, the nursing professional degree designation for loan purposes rests on this notice. Schools may raise 2026-27 loans to the professional limit, but the same notice invites them to consider keeping these programs at graduate caps. Our report on the end of Grad PLUS explains the general limits.

Every Lawsuit, and Where It Stands

Four cases carry the nursing professional degree challenge. Dates below come from each court's docket as of Oct. 14.

AANP v. McMahon (D.D.C.)

Six associations, including the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), filed May 21. An amended complaint accepted Aug. 3 also challenges GENERAL-26-42, arguing it still leaves out the nursing PhD. Plaintiffs in the consolidated cases moved for summary judgment on Oct. 1 and Oct. 2. Under the July 20 schedule, the department's cross-motion is due Nov. 6, plaintiffs reply by Nov. 20 and the department's final brief is due Dec. 4.

American Nurses Association v. Department of Education (D. Mass.)

The American Nurses Association (ANA) and nine other nursing groups sued May 29, and the National Rural Health Association joined in June. On Aug. 10, Judge Patti B. Saris found the rule's definitions likely contrary to law and called Howell's opinion "well-reasoned," but denied preliminary relief without prejudice, because the interim guidance already covers MSN, DNP and DNAP students and the record did not show a member harmed by the PhD exclusion. Plaintiffs moved for summary judgment Sept. 16. Under an Aug. 17 schedule, the department's cross-motion is due Oct. 16 and the final brief Nov. 13.

Maryland v. Department of Education (D. Md.)

Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia sued May 19, challenging both the definition and the department's reading of the "interim exception" for students enrolled before July 1, 2026. The states moved for summary judgment Aug. 26. On Sept. 25, the department moved to dismiss, arguing the states lack standing, and alternatively for summary judgment. Under the scheduling order, the states reply by Oct. 16 and briefing closes Nov. 6.

AFL-CIO v. Department of Education (D.D.C.)

The AFL-CIO, AFSCME, the American Federation of Teachers and National Nurses United sued Aug. 11. The case is before Howell as a related case. The complaint attacks the definition, limits on the interim exception and the rule's timing. Its briefing dates were not visible on the public docket as of Oct. 14.

Other Cases

The department's Sept. 25 filing also lists a suit by naturopathic medical colleges in Oregon (No. 3:26-cv-1599). It does not involve nursing.

What Congress Has Done on the Nursing Professional Degree

Congress could also settle the question directly. Bills titled the Nursing is a Professional Degree Act would add "Nursing (MSN, DNP, DNAP, or Ph.D)" to the law's list of professional degrees. The main versions are H.R. 8691, from Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., and S. 4568, from Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., with four Republican cosponsors at introduction. As of Oct. 14, both remain in committee.

The House Appropriations Committee's fiscal 2027 education spending bill, H.R. 9260, includes Section 322, which would bar the department from running federal aid in a way that does not designate "advanced nursing programs as professional degree programs." The nursing language was added through a manager's amendment adopted by voice vote, and the committee approved the bill 34-28 on June 9, ASAHP reported. It has not reached the House floor. Agencies are running on a stopgap funding law (Public Law 119-103) through Dec. 11 that does not include the nursing language.

What Happens Next

Oct. 16: department's cross-motion due in Massachusetts; states' reply due in Maryland.
Oct. 30: ANA plaintiffs' reply due.
Nov. 6: briefing closes in Maryland; department's cross-motion due in AANP.
Nov. 13: briefing closes in Massachusetts.
Nov. 20: AANP plaintiffs' reply due.
Dec. 4: briefing closes in AANP v. McMahon.
Dec. 11: current federal funding law expires.

No court has set a ruling date, and losing parties can appeal, so the nursing professional degree question may not end with these rulings. Saris said the nursing groups may renew their request if the department withdraws its guidance. Students should confirm their own limits with their school's financial aid office.

Tracker Updates

Oct. 14, 2026: Nursing professional degree tracker published. Checked against CourtListener dockets, FSA announcements and Congress.gov records as of this date.

Where Graduate Nursing Loan Limits Stand Now: Tracking the Professional Degree Lawsuits