The UCLA School of Law discriminated against white and Asian students in their admissions process, the Department of Justice said on Thursday, Oct. 1. It’s an alleged violation that occurs in the aftermath of the Supreme Court striking down affirmative action admission policies in 2023 — and it’s not UCLA’s first brush with the Trump administration, either.
The DOJ said it examined seven years of applicant-level data from 2019 to 2025, finding that “an applicant’s race has a large effect” on how they’re treated by the UCLA Law admissions committee, according to a letter signed by Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.
Black applicants “had approximately seven times the odds of admission” to the law school
compared to its “otherwise equivalent white applicants” for the 2025 incoming class, according to the DOJ. For Hispanic applicants, their odds of admission were approximately two times that of “otherwise white equivalent applicants,” the DOJ said.
"The use of race as a thumb on the scale that helps or disadvantages any student is illegal," Dhillon said in a statement.
However, UCLA School of Law said it's "confident" in its process in an online statement published on Oct. 1.
“UCLA School of Law is committed to making admissions decisions in compliance with all applicable laws, including the California Constitution and Proposition 209, federal statutes, and the U.S. Constitution,” UCLA School of Law said. Prop 209 in California, passed in 1996, prohibits the University of California, which UCLA is a part of, from considering race, sex or ethnicity in admissions, according to UCLA.
“Students are admitted through a comprehensive, merit-based review process that considers each applicant’s achievements and experiences," UCLA School of Law continued. "We are confident in our process.”
The DOJ also pointed to median LSAT scores — standardized tests used for law school admission — between 2019 and 2024. The median score for admitted Black applicants matched the median score of white and Asian applicants denied admission to UCLA Law, according to the DOJ.
“In other words, white and Asian applicants are being turned away from UCLA Law who would likely have been admitted if they were of the ‘right’ race,” the DOJ said in its letter.
Last year, the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation suspended hundreds of grants combined, alleging “antisemitism and bias” in its reasons to UCLA, although most of the federal research support was restored about two months later, the university said.
Earlier this year, the DOJ sued the University of California and alleged that Jewish and Israeli employees at UCLA faced discrimination and a hostile work environment. UCLA officials have maintained that antisemitism has no place at the school.
Paris Barraza is a reporter covering Los Angeles and Southern California for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at pbarraza@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: DOJ claims UCLA discriminated against white, Asian student applicants
