Trump administration finds Duke School of Medicine racially discriminated in admissions

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights found Duke’s School of Medicine to have intentionally discriminated against white and Asian applicants in its admissions practices

The office announced the finding in a Tuesday press release, with further details provided in an emailed letter to Dr. Mary Klotman, dean of the School of Medicine and executive vice president for health affairs. The letter said the School of Medicine had violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, which prohibits discrimination by any healthcare provider that receives federal funding.

The letter focused on internal communications and differences in applicants’ MCAT scores broken down by race to allege that the School of Medicine maintained intentionally discriminatory policies even after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to ban race-based affirmative action in college admissions practices

“In its highly selective medical school admissions process, Duke SOM’s use of race or race-revealing proxies advantaged some applicants at the expense of others and subjected applicants to differential treatment on the basis of race,” wrote Paula Stannard, director of the HHS Office for Civil Rights

“We are reviewing the letter and its conclusions carefully,” a University spokesperson told The Chronicle on Thursday. “Duke is committed to complying with the law and will continue to do so in a manner that is consistent with our academic mission.” 

The University provided a similar statement after the Department of Justice found Duke Law School had also discriminated against white and Asian applicants in its admissions practices last month. In that probe, the DOJ relied on evidence related to standardized test scores and is seeking a voluntary agreement with the University

HHS first opened the investigation into Duke in July 2025. After concluding the investigation, the department is also seeking a “voluntary resolution agreement” with Duke to come into compliance and said the School of Medicine and Duke University Health System have 10 business days to respond to its findings. The letter warned that if Duke does not comply, the University could face further consequences, including a referral to the Department of Justice. 

The HHS investigation is the first of its kind for the Trump administration and one of seven finding racial discrimination in admissions at colleges and universities nationwide.  

According to HHS, School of Medicine officials provided documentation relevant to the investigation sometime between August 2025 and March 2026, with a follow-up coming sometime between April and June 2026. A centerpiece of this data was the GPAs and MCAT scores for the incoming classes at the School of Medicine from 2020 to 2025

HHS analyzed this data broken down by race to claim that the School of Medicine had discriminated against white and Asian applicants. According to its own analysis, Black and Hispanic applicants were admitted at a rate two to three times higher than white and Asian applicants, despite averaging lower GPA and MCAT scores

In the 2024-25 admissions cycle — the most recent included in the letter — Black and Hispanic applicants’ mean MCAT scores were in the 87th and 89th percentile, respectively, while white and Asian applicants were in the 97th and 98th percentile

“After accounting for available academic, application and admissions-stage variables, race remained associated with statistically significant advantages or disadvantages at key stages of the medical school admissions process,” Stannard wrote

The letter also pointed to internal emails to claim that School of Medicine officials aimed to preserve race-based admissions practices after the Supreme Court’s ruling. In particular, the letter claimed SOM documents and communications showed admissions officials using standards such as “overcoming hardship” and “Social Justice Advocacy” to discern applicants’ race. 

These “subjective standards” allowed officials to “identify applicants by race and reward or penalize them accordingly, in a remarkably consistent fashion, year after year, despite the requirements of SFFA,” Stannard wrote in reference to the Supreme Court ruling. 

However, HHS also determined it would discontinue investigating allegations of discrimination in the School of Medicine’s scholarships, pipeline and enrichment programs, recruitment, training or employment practices. 

The department said that Duke claimed many of the programs in question ended or no longer restrict participation based on race, and that in 2025, the School of Medicine closed its Multicultural Reommittee ceased activity. 

The School of Medicine has previously faced scrutiny for its admissions practices. In spring 2024, the School became enmeshed in controversy after viral allegations from conservative circles claimed it had lowered admission standards to fulfill diversity, equity and inclusion goals. 

At the time, the School denied the allegations, saying it continued to rely on GPA and MCAT scores among other criteria, while also defending “recruiting diverse talent” as necessary to “deliver the highest quality care to our patients.”

Beyond the School of Medicine and Law School findings, Duke faces at least two more ongoing federal investigations into the University and the Duke Law Journal for similar concerns of racial discrimination. Duke previously resolved a separate investigation by cutting ties with The PhD Project, an organization that helps students from underrepresented backgrounds obtain business degrees

In recent months, the University has also come under federal scrutiny outside of formal investigations. In the spring, the National Science Foundation imposed a rare funding freeze on Duke; in August, the Department of Defense ordered the University to complete an audit of its foreign ties, or risk losing federal funding

Editor’s note: This story was updated Thursday to reflect University comment. 

Source: dukechronicle.com