“The way that I’ve been thinking about this,” on source said, “is if you take the major organs out of a human, do you still have a human or do you have a corpse?”

And here’s a check point story I wrote after the first two days of this week’s session.

For context, here’s the primer I wrote coming into the week.

The shift comes after a series of lengthy caucuses Wednesday and a tense discussion before the public where many questions were raised over what grad programs qualify as professional.

This definition is critical as it determines which students will have access to the higher $200,000 loan cap.

Comments on this third version were limited, though mostly positive. But it will likely be rehashed in more detail tomorrow. It’s only day 3 so expect more changes.

It seems to be on the opposite end of the spectrum from yesterday’s very narrow list of 10 programs. And some sources say it should include programs beyond just health care, like education and social work. But, remember it only lasts until 2027.

Little had changed in the language. But officials said this version clarified that in order to qualify as “designated” the university could use marketing materials that clearly said the program leads to a professional license. They reinforced that this had to be done prior to July 4, 2025.

So ED went back to the drawing table once again. At the end of the day, we wrapped up with a third proposal.

Some panelists worried allowing anything other than formal reports would open the flood gates and defeat the loan cap’s purpose of efficiency and lowering college cost. Others said it would leave out key high-demand health care programs with inescapably high costs that otherwise meet the criteria.

But the main question was what counts as designation? Is it limited to formal labels in government reports like IPEDS? (This was only possible for doctoral degrees like OT) Or could it include less formal descriptions in course catalogs or marketing materials for programs like social work?

The plan created an interim definition of professional that would last until June 30, 2027. It would allow any post-bacc program that met existing statutory standards, was designated as professional by the university prior to OBBBA and led to licensure to receive the higher $200,000 aggregate cap.