Before The Doctor Walks In

When I was younger, I never heard anyone talk much about nursing school and what it entails. It was already clear that the role simply wasn’t treated like its own field.

That absence of language wasn’t personal; it reflected the reality of how the field functions in a particular region. In India, the Western idea of Nursing—licensed practice, standardized training, trust—isn’t a recognized profession in the same way. The work is seen as assistance, not expertise; Nurses aren’t treated like independent clinicians. The ladder is so rigid that the title of being a Nurse doesn’t carry the same authority or identity it does in the U.S—or, at least, did.

But, regardless, that was the cultural script I grew up reading. And no one challenged it. Which is why the recent debate on if Nursing is a “professional degree” stunned me—not because it existed, but because it sounded eerily familiar.

According to Newsweek, the U.S. Department of Education has, officially, excluded Nursing from its revised list of “professional degree” programs, under the new One Big Beautiful Bill Act. This means that Nursing will no longer qualify for the higher student-loan borrowing limits normally reserved for traditional “professional” degrees like Medicine or Law. 

For aspiring Nurses, this isn’t just a bureaucratic re-labeling; it threatens to make advanced education unaffordable, hence shrinking the pipeline of future Nurses. 

It’s ironic: 

In India, Nursing struggles to be recognized as a profession because of culture. 

In the U.S., it’s struggling because of bureaucracy.

And somehow, both ended up echoing the same idea: Nurses deserve respect for the vital work they do.  

Recognizing Nursing as a profession does more than give respect to its practitioners—it has effects on healthcare quality, patient safety, and access to care. As the world faces more complex health challenges, the expertise, judgement, and dedication of nurses become essential. By understanding and addressing barriers that have and continue to marginalize Nursing, we can begin to create/fix a system that values their work appropriately.   

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