U.S. President Trump demands colleges to demonstrate they exclude race during application processes
In a significant move, the Trump administration has directed the U.S. Department of Education to collect detailed, disaggregated admissions data from institutions of higher education. This policy aims to enhance transparency and uncover potential race-based preferences in admissions processes.
The new policy requires colleges to submit data on the race and sex of applicants, admitted students, and enrolled students, alongside academic achievement measures like test scores and GPAs. This data will be collected annually through an improved reporting system managed by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which also conducts audits to ensure data accuracy and consistency.
This policy originated following the legal challenges such as Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which exposed alleged racial discrimination in admissions. The administration’s position emphasizes meritocracy, asserting that admissions should not consider skin color and that transparency will prevent discriminatory practices without necessitating prolonged litigation.
The reporting requirements are broad, applying to virtually all institutions receiving federal aid. However, some critics have noted that not all colleges are equally affected and existing data collection was already in place but generally less detailed or consistent.
The administration has also called for technological improvements to the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) portal for easier access and better organization of data, along with stricter enforcement actions against institutions failing to comply.
If colleges fail to submit timely, complete, and accurate data, Education Secretary Linda McMahon can take action under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
The policy follows a trend where colleges have been barred from asking the race of students who are applying. Once students enroll, the schools can ask about race, but students must be told they have a right not to answer. Colleges have added more essays or personal statements to their admissions process to get a better picture of an applicant's background.
In the past, universities have shifted their focus from affirmative action to low-income students. For instance, after Michigan voters rejected affirmative action in 2006, the University of Michigan shifted attention to low-income students. Despite the school's efforts, the share of Black and Hispanic undergraduates hasn't fully rebounded from a falloff after 2006.
The University of California saw enrollment change after the statewide ban on affirmative action in 1996. Within two years, Black and Hispanic enrollments fell by half at the system's two most selective campuses - Berkeley and UCLA. Similarly, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Amherst College saw steep drops in the percentage of Black students in their incoming classes.
At other elite, selective schools such as Yale, Princeton, and the University of Virginia, the changes in the percentage of Black students were less than a percentage point year to year. However, Hispanic enrollments have been increasing, but Black enrollments continued to slide, going from 8% of undergraduates in 2006 to 4% in 2025 at some institutions.
The new policy is similar to parts of recent settlement agreements the government negotiated with Brown University and Columbia University. For example, the 10-campus University of California system started a program that promises admission to the top 9% of students in each high school across the state.
In 2023, the Supreme Court ruled against the use of affirmative action in admissions but allowed colleges to consider how race has shaped students' lives if applicants share that information in their essays. This ruling, along with the new data reporting policy, is expected to bring significant changes to college admissions in the U.S.
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/29/us/politics/trump-administration-college-admissions-data.html [2] https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2019/08/28/trump-administration-plans-require-colleges-report-data-race-and-sex-admissions [3] https://www.edweek.org/leadership/policy-and-politics/trump-administration-to-require-colleges-to-report-data-on-race-and-sex-in-admissions/2019/08 [4] https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2019/08/29/trump-administration-to-require-colleges-report-data-about-race-sex-admissions/ [5] https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2019/08/28/trump-administration-plans-require-colleges-report-data-race-and-sex-admissions
- The Trump administration's policy on education-and-self-development, aimed at enhancing transparency and uncovering potential race-based preferences in admissions processes, falls under policy-and-legislation and can be categorized under politics and general news.
- The new policy, requiring colleges to submit detailed data on race, sex, and academic achievement measures, will be implemented through improvements to the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) portal, a topic of recent focus in politics and general news.
