New US Department of Education rules could sharply restrict access to federal financing for graduate-level nursing students, including CNSs and other APRNs. The proposal would reclassify post-baccalaureate nursing programs as “graduate” degrees instead of “professional” degrees. As a result, nursing students would qualify for only half the federal loan amounts available to medical students.

NACNS is uniting with over fifty other nursing organizations to get this policy changed before the final regulation language is released in early 2026, and implementation in July 2026. 

One easy thing you can do right now is sign the petition to ask the Department of Education to include nursing in its proposed definition of professional degree programs. It takes less than a minute and is an important way to leverage strength in numbers.