Nursing is a profession
It’s been a while in internet time since the US Department of Education announced their plan to “de-professionalize” the graduate nursing degree, and I have been going back and forth on adding my voice publicly to this issue. There has been such a tremendous level of support for nurses since this announcement that I have decided not to go for the deep dive in a post or podcast episode (for now), but I do think it is worth sharing a few important points on the matter.
First, nursing is not the only graduate degree getting kicked off the “professional degree” list. The other graduate professions also facing the same status change includes occupational therapists, physical therapists, social workers, mental health counselors, speech pathologists, educators, audiologists, physician assistants, and accountants.
What gets to keep this professional status? Medical doctors, doctors of osteopathy, lawyers, and theologians. Anyone want to guess what the big difference is between all of these careers? I will give you a hint:
And what exactly does declassifying graduate nursing actually mean? These degrees may no longer be classified as “professional,” and students could lose access to essential federal financial aid, making programs harder to afford and ultimately discouraging people from entering high-demand careers. With an ever growing nursing shortage, this is one more barrier to filling that gap. Fewer graduate nursing degrees means less nursing faculty- also a major shortage area. Not enough nursing faculty- even fewer nurses entering the workforce.
The argument has been made that despite this, nursing will remain a profession. Sure, this is true. (I even have a sticker to prove it!). But when the pipeline is effected, as I noted above, it effects every bit of the field.
For now, I will leave you with a few articles that do a better job at discussing this than I could. I also hope that you will sign this petition to join all of the organizations below to oppose this move.
Opinion Pieces & Further Info
NH Nurses Association statement
Thank you for your advocacy and links to the petition and supporting articles! Healthcare is a team sport and it's all hands on deck!🫡
That's awful!