The Department of Education Wants to Strip Accounting of Its Professional Status

The Department of Education wants to strip accounting of its professional degree status. This would slash federal loan limits for accounting students from $50,000 to $20,500 per year, starting in 2026.

On episode 464 of The Accounting Podcast, David and I dug into this proposal. The Department of Education says they're required by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to identify eligible programs. Their proposed list? Medicine, dentistry, law, and a few other "high-cost" programs make the cut. But accounting? Nope. Neither do nursing, architecture, education (ironically), social work, engineering, or several other fields.

The AICPA and NASBA are fighting back. AICPA's President said that recognizing accounting as a profession is "common sense." NASBA points out that CPAs have been licensed professionals since 1896 – one of the longest-licensed professions in the United States.

This mainly affects graduate students, rather than undergraduates. Some are saying, "who needs to spend $50,000 per year on education?" But they're forgetting how expensive degrees have gotten. Some programs cost over $30,000 a year.

For me, though, it's about more than money – it's a prestige thing. If doctors and lawyers are considered professionals but accountants are not, that's a problem.

David made a great point: this whole mess stems from Congress passing a bill without enough detail, leaving government agencies to make up the rules. So much for getting rid of the deep state, right?

Here's where it gets interesting: a listener on our livestream pointed out that if we're not professionals anymore, we'd be entitled to overtime under federal labor laws. Imagine accounting firms suddenly having to pay overtime for those 50-60 hour weeks! That might actually force change faster than any lobbying effort.