Two UCLA schools face federal findings of race-based admissions just as UC faculty warn that students arrive unprepared for college math.
TL;DR
The Justice Department says two UCLA graduate schools, medicine and law, considered race in admissions after the Supreme Court banned the practice in 2023; UCLA denies it. The findings land as UC reconsiders its 2020 decision to drop the SAT, made over its own faculty task force’s objections, and as more than 3,000 UC faculty warn that incoming students lack basic math and writing skills.
WHAT THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FOUND
- The law school. On Oct. 1, 2026, the department’s Civil Rights Division announced findings that UCLA Law discriminated against white and Asian applicants in admitting its 2023, 2024 and 2025 classes. The department says the school “rejected white and Asian applicants who had the same LSAT scores as admitted black and Hispanic applicants.” It also says that in 2024 and 2025 combined, “half of the admitted black applicants had LSAT scores that were at or below 90% of the admitted white applicants.” According to the findings, the school’s essay prompts were “designed to elicit information about race,” and admissions staff explained how to disclose race at recruitment events such as a “Diversity Admissions Open House.” (Findings letter)
- The medical school. On May 6, 2026, after a review lasting nearly a year, the department concluded that Geffen’s leadership “intentionally selected applicants based on their race.” It reported that admitted Black and Latino applicants had lower median MCAT scores and GPAs than admitted white and Asian applicants. The findings letter cites internal emails, training materials, and a “guiding principles” memo that, according to the Los Angeles Times, instructed committee chairs to ensure representation of applicants who “identify as BIPOC.” The department has also joined a lawsuit against the medical school brought by Students for Fair Admissions and other groups.
