The department says the investigations aim to ensure medical school admissions reward achievement rather than race-based considerations.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights opened probes Tuesday into five medical schools nationwide over alleged racial discrimination in admissions, part of a federal effort to enforce civil rights law and restore selection based on individual achievement.
The schools being investigated are Dartmouth College’s Geisel School of Medicine, East Carolina University’s Brody School of Medicine, St. Louis University School of Medicine, Western University of Health Sciences, and William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Investigators will look into whether the institutions violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which blocks discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs receiving federal funds.
The universities did not immediately return a request for comment.
The investigation is a joint effort with the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, with officials describing the effort as advancing the administration’s stated goal of eliminating race-based preferences in medical education.
“Your race should not decide whether or not you can study medicine, yet many schools seem to be more focused on meeting racial quotas than selecting individuals who have earned entrance based on merit,” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said in a statement.
“Schools that engage in such admissions policies are not only violating the law, but they are also undermining the fundamental principles of fairness and meritocracy that define our nation,” she said.
“The Trump Administration is holding schools to account for their reported discriminatory behavior and will ensure a future where students are once again rewarded for their hard work and achievement, not prejudged by the color of their skin.”
Executive Orders
President Donald Trump signed an executive order the day after his second inauguration in early 2025, ordering the restoration of merit-based opportunity and the end of illegal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) preferences in higher education.
A second order in August 2025 required greater transparency in admissions data.
Department records show that more than 300 colleges and universities have since shut down DEI offices, removed diversity statements from hiring, or altered related policies. No fewer than 175 institutions restructured or eliminated DEI centers. Thirty-one schools agreed to end partnerships with a program the department said limited eligibility by race in violation of Title VI.
