Case: DOJ Investigation of UCSD Medical School
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Case Summary
The Department of Justice (DOJ) opened an investigation into the admissions practices of University of San Diego medical school (San Diego Med), over suspicions that they illegally used race in their admissions process. On July 20, 2026, the DOJ issued findings that San Diego Med used race in its admissions process in violation of both Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin, and the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA), which banned race discrimination in higher education admissions. After a review of San Diego Med’s admissions records and publicly available data, the DOJ found that San Diego Med deliberately discriminated against applicants because of their race both before and after SFFA. The DOJ looked at information detailing how San Diego Med application reviewers relied on race-neutral subjective criteria like “hardship” as a proxy for race to deliberately increase admission of “underrepresented minorities in medicine” (URM), which included Black and Hispanic applicants. As a result, the DOJ found that white and Asian applicants were denied admission in favor of Black and Hispanic applicants with lower MCAT scores and GPAs. The Department sought to enter into a voluntary resolution agreement with San Diego med to ensure that its admissions practices are brought into compliance with Title VI.
Summary Authors
Sela Adegbile (10/8/2026)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Docket
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Litigation and Investigations By the Government
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
The University of San Diego Medical School
Plaintiff Type(s):
U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff
Defendants
Defendant Type(s):
Facility Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Title VI, Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq.
Other Dockets:
Available Documents:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Discrimination Basis:
Affected Race(s):
Case Summary of DOJ Investigation of UCSD Medical School, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48402/ (last updated 10/8/2026).