U.S. Department of Education Expands Graduate Programs Eligible for $200,000 Loan Caps After Court Order

The U.S. Department of Education issued a revised rule on Monday that expands the list of graduate professional degree programs eligible for $200,000 federal student loan caps from about a dozen to 29 specific programs. The added programs include the master of science in nursing, doctor of nursing practice, and doctor of nurse anesthesia practice.

The rule takes effect Wednesday. The change responds to a federal judge's order last week that blocked the department from applying its original definition to nursing and several other fields. Under that definition, only about a dozen programs qualified as professional, including law, medicine, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, and clinical psychology.

Theology studies programs are removed from the professional list under the revised rule, though the master of divinity degree remains. Eight groups representing nurse practitioners, therapists, and speech-language pathologists had sued over the original definition.

“While we disagree with the Court’s analysis regarding the Department’s definition of professional degree programs for purposes of determining eligibility for higher loan limits, the Department is complying with the order,” Undersecretary Nicholas Kent said in a statement.

The student-loan overhaul that contained the professional-degree definition was enacted in President Trump’s tax bill last year. Previously, graduate students could borrow up to the full cost of attendance. The department notified universities Monday that it remains confident the original rule will be upheld.

The amended rule is expected to stay in place during the judge’s preliminary stay but may change as litigation proceeds. Some graduate nursing degrees, including nurse anesthesia programs, can cost more than $100,000.