U.S. President Donald Trump holds a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Palm Beach, Fla, on Dec. 29, 2025.Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Zubin Austin is a professor and the academic director of the Centre for Practice Excellence at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto, and the president-elect of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.
Amid much noise emanating from Washington these days, a seemingly small change with potentially big ramifications for society was announced.
Last month, the Trump administration proposed changes in the way postsecondary degrees are classified – and which degrees will no longer be considered “professional” for the purposes of determining student aid for graduate studies. If this change comes into effect, the U.S. Department of Education will not consider the following to be professional degrees eligible for higher student-loan limits: nursing, physical therapists, physician assistants, audiologists, architects, accountants, educators and social workers.
The most immediate practical impact of this change in designation will be a significant reduction in the amount of financial aid that will be available to students in these fields. This of course will reduce access to education and most likely will further worsen existing skills shortages, particularly in high-needs fields such as nursing and teaching. It is perhaps not a coincidence that many of the fields affected are female-dominated.
More ominously but less widely discussed are the implications of governments or bureaucrats deciding what a profession is and what it is not. While the main driver for this policy-change proposal appears to be linked to limiting student aid, the implications of this in terms of reducing the influence, legitimacy and standing of these professions, both within the public’s eye and as a priority for postsecondary institutions, requires further analysis.
In our current era, skepticism, indifference and outright hostility toward professionals is closely tied to the erosion of trust in experts and science. There are many reasons for this, ranging from algorithmic bias and the proliferation of social media to much- publicized reversals and, in some cases, errors made by scientific experts.
Today, it is not clear where professionals stand with respect to the public and communities they serve. On the one hand, it appears that faith in individual professionals continues to be strong. While there has been some erosion in the past decade, in general members of the public trust the pharmacists, doctors, nurses, teachers, veterinarians and other regulated professionals who help them lead better and healthier lives. These individuals are the embodiment – the hands and the face – of scientific evidence in action.
As educated and licensed professionals, these individuals apply their training and understanding to solving real-world problems we all experience. And in return, for the most part, most citizens are pleased and grateful that these individuals are doing work that serves and protects us all.
On the other hand, faith in professions – and by extension, belief in the evidence that undergirds the work of these professions – is eroding and being challenged as never before. In this environment, a government move that could be seen as “deprofessionalizing” established professions such as nursing and physical therapy should raise concerns. In her 2004 book Dark Age Ahead, renowned urbanist Jane Jacobs raised the alarm regarding the decay she was observing globally that would ultimately lead societies to a new Dark Age. One of the key trends she discussed was the decline of professions and the disestablishment of professional expertise as a pillar of a modern, well-functioning society.
Indeed, professions are one of the important estates in society, a critical check-and-balance on corporate concentration or governmental bullying. When governments arbitrarily degrade established professions and turn them into “just another job,” there is a substantial risk that this delicate balance will tilt away from public interest – and leave us all more vulnerable and in a more socially precarious place.
Through their advanced education rooted in science and evidence, and a structure that defines clearly the standards of practice and code of ethics under which they work, professionals and the work they do are central to a healthy society. Professions not only safeguard individuals, they protect the interests of the public. Because of their unique power, knowledge and skills, professionals can and should speak truth to corporations and governments, ensuring that the best available evidence guides decision-making, rather than maximizing shareholder value or political expediency. This system has flaws and has not been perfect, but delegitimizing professions, even obliquely, raises more significant concerns regarding public interests, the safeguarding of individual rights and the healthy functioning of a society.
A quiet announcement focused on reducing student financial aid may be the first step in a systematic dismantling of what ought to be one of the most important pillars of our society.