Why Proposed Degree Reclassification Could Reshape Pre-Health & Allied Health Careers

Over the last two months, a major shakeup has emerged in higher-ed policy that could have big implications for students pursuing careers in health, rehabilitation, and allied health. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) released a proposal redefining which graduate and professional degrees qualify as “professional” programs eligible for high federal loan caps.

What’s Changing

Under the new draft rule (part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, or OBBBA), only a small number of doctoral-level programs remain classified as “professional” — eligible for the largest loan caps. Those include fields like medicine (M.D.), dentistry, law (J.D.), veterinary medicine, pharmacy, psychology (Psy.D.), optometry, podiatry, and theology/divinity.

By contrast, many allied-health and rehabilitative fields commonly pursued by pre-health students — such as nursing (allied or advanced degrees), physical therapy (DPT), occupational therapy (OT), physician assistant (PA), audiology, speech-language pathology, social work, counseling, public health, etc. — are not currently included in ED’s “professional degree” list under the draft rule.

That means, beginning July 1, 2026 (if the rule is finalized), students entering many of these programs may face substantially reduced access to federal graduate-level student loans. Rather than being able to borrow up to the full cost of attendance (as under previous Grad PLUS provisions), future students may be capped at much lower limits.

Students should map out a financial plan that will help them achieve their goals of studying professional degrees that are not fully dependent on loans and funding options that may be impacted if this new proposal is implemented.