DOJ: UC Davis Med School ‘Discriminates Based on Race in Admissions'

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Wednesday that the University of California (UC), Davis School of Medicine (Davis Med) “discriminates based on race in its admissions process,” in violation of the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision finding “affirmative action” unconstitutional. 

DOJ said its Civil Rights Division made the determination following a six-month investigation by the department into the school’s admissions practices. 

“Davis Med’s actions reflect both unabashed contempt for the rule of law and plain disregard for the potential public health consequences of putting race over merit, skill, and competence,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Department will not allow schools to violate federal law without consequence.”

The DOJ said its investigation revealed that Davis Med allegedly shifted its admissions practices after the Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard to covertly continue factoring in race in its admissions.

“Documents provided by Davis Med show that its leadership openly boasted about ‘skirting’ the Supreme Court’s ruling by using certain class-based ‘socioeconomic variables’ or ‘disadvantages’ as proxies for race (e.g., family income, parental education, or being from an ‘underserved area’),” the department said in its press release.

The DOJ alleges that Davis Med created the “Davis Scale” to admit “underrepresented minorities.” The scale purportedly ranks applicants on perceived “disadvantages” while adjusting for the individual’s GPA and MCAT scores. 

“The result: in 2024, Davis Med became the third most racially diverse medical school in the country, behind only historically black universities,” DOJ said. 

The department said it sifted through the school’s admissions data from 2023 to 2025 and found that 93 percent of white and certain Asian admittees had MCAT scores at or above the average black admittee. Even so, the school allegedly admitted black and Hispanic applicants at rates up to six times higher than white and Asian individuals, “despite consistently having, on average, lower academic qualifications,” according to DOJ. 

UC Davis published a statement to its website saying the school is “disappointed by the report and its conclusions.” 

“UC Davis School of Medicine strongly disagrees with any characterization of its admissions practices as discriminatory or inconsistent with applicable law,” the statement reads.

“The report’s findings do not accurately reflect the school’s rigorous, individualized, and merit-based admissions process and our firm commitment to complying with applicable federal and state antidiscrimination laws,” the statement continues. “UC Davis is fully committed to meeting the critical healthcare needs of California, particularly those in underserved and under-resourced areas.”

DOJ said the school is just one of several medical schools that allegedly “continue to flout” the Supreme Court’s decision prohibiting race-based admissions. Last month, DOJ concluded that UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine and Yale University School of Medicine have allegedly engaged in similar practices. 

DOJ said it will “engage in settlement negotiations” with any school it has found in violation of the law to make sure its admissions policies are brought into compliance. DOJ said if the schools are unwilling to settle, the department will sue.

“Medical schools receive substantial federal financial assistance and are subject to federal non-discrimination laws. The Department will continue to monitor and ensure their compliance with federal law,” DOJ said.