On April 30, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) released final regulations excluding graduate education programs from its definition of “professional degrees,” making them ineligible for higher federal student loan caps. Consequently, borrowing for these programs will be capped at $100,000, as opposed to the $200,000 cap that is placed on “professional students” from the following 11 fields: pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, podiatry, theology and clinical psychology.

Opponents to the exclusion cited teacher shortages and the importance of graduate programs for licensure advancement, specialization and leadership roles in education. In its final rules, the USDE acknowledged concerns over the exclusion of education from the list of professional degrees, but argued that it was bound by a reference in last year’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill” to an existing regulatory definition of professional programs.

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