In a significant development regarding college admissions policies, the U.S. Justice Department announced that the medical school at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has violated federal law by improperly considering race in its admissions process. This finding comes amid a broader scrutiny by the Trump administration, which has been actively investigating colleges to ensure compliance with recent legal standards surrounding affirmative action.
The investigation into UCLA escalates an ongoing conflict between the institution and federal authorities, primarily concerning allegations of antisemitic harassment at the main campus. As of now, the UCLA medical school has not publicly responded to inquiries regarding the Justice Department’s findings.
The crux of the issue lies in a landmark 2023 Supreme Court ruling that declared affirmative action in college admissions illegal. While the ruling allows for consideration of a student’s background in a more generalized sense, it has raised concerns among conservatives who argue that colleges may still be using indirect methods to factor race into their admissions decisions, which they view as discriminatory practices.
In March, the Justice Department initiated investigations into several institutions, including Stanford University, Ohio State University, and the University of California, San Diego, focusing on potential race-based discrimination in their medical school admissions processes. This scrutiny follows the administration’s earlier demands for selective colleges to provide data demonstrating adherence to the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Following a year-long investigation, the Justice Department concluded that UCLA’s medical school had favored Black and Hispanic applicants at the expense of white and Asian American students. This conclusion was supported by data indicating that the average GPA and test scores of admitted Black and Hispanic students were notably lower than those of their white and Asian American counterparts. For instance, admitted Black students in 2024 had an average GPA of 3.72, while Asian American and white students averaged 3.84 and 3.83, respectively.
The findings suggest that UCLA’s medical school may have prioritized non-academic factors to achieve its diversity objectives. Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department, stated that these practices resulted in the denial of admission to highly qualified white and Asian students based solely on their race.
Additionally, the investigation highlighted an application question that invited students to disclose their membership in any marginalized group and describe its impact, a question included in the application for the years 2024 and 2025. This aspect of the admissions process has raised further concerns about compliance with the legal standards established by the Supreme Court.
It is important to note that California voters had already prohibited affirmative action in college admissions through a 1997 ballot measure. The University of California system had argued in a Supreme Court brief that this change led to a significant decrease in the enrollment of underrepresented minorities, particularly in its most selective campuses. In response, the UC system implemented various race-neutral initiatives aimed at enhancing diversity but acknowledged ongoing challenges in achieving this goal.
The Justice Department’s findings against UCLA could lead to a voluntary resolution aimed at ensuring compliance with federal guidelines, or potentially result in legal action if an agreement cannot be reached. Consequences for non-compliance could include the loss of federal funding, which underscores the gravity of the situation for the university.
In a related development, a coalition of 17 Democratic state attorneys general has filed a lawsuit challenging a Trump administration policy requiring higher education institutions to collect data proving they are not considering race in admissions, further complicating the landscape of college admissions law.
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