Education & Career
Justice Department says UCLA law school used race in admissions
Hindustan Times··2 Oct
The U.S. Justice Department said Thursday UCLA's law school illegally considered race in admissions, following a similar finding against the university's medical school. The investigation found the school discriminated against white and Asian American students by favoring Black and Hispanic applicants in 2023, 2024 and 2025 classes. UCLA said students are admitted through a comprehensive merit-based review process.
Prism
What It Means For You
- Prospective UCLA law applicants may face tighter federal scrutiny of essays and recruitment events.
- California applicants should note voters ended affirmative action in a 1997 ballot measure.
- Law school candidates from all backgrounds may see admissions staff change how they discuss diversity in open houses.
What's Happening
- The department said admissions staff instructed applicants during recruitment, including a Diversity Admissions Open House, how to reveal race in essays.
- Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Civil Rights Division, said the school runs a two-tiered admissions system.
- The administration has also accused UC Berkeley Law and UC San Diego's medical school of discrimination.
The LSAT Finding
- The department's analysis found the mean LSAT score was lower for admitted Black applicants than for admitted white applicants.
- The UC system said ending affirmative action led to a drop in underrepresented minorities at selective campuses.
- Trump has accused colleges of using personal statements as proxies to consider race.
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