DOJ targets Ohio State College of Medicine admissions in civil rights investigation

Audrey Coleman
Fri, 27 Mar 2026 01:24:31 +0000
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Hamilton Hall, which houses the College of Medicine, is being investigated by the Department of Justice regarding civil rights compliance. Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor

Ohio State’s College of Medicine is one of three medical schools that now face an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice in a civil rights compliance case.?

The investigation is to determine if the admissions department discriminated against applicants because of their race in documents from 2019 to 2026.

The letter, dated March 25, states that a “compliance investigation” will take place over whether the college’s admissions violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VI restricts discrimination based on race, color or national origin in any program that receives federal financial assistance.?

In short, it is designed to ensure federal funds do not support or endorse discriminatory practices, meaning universities, public schools and state agencies fall under the guidelines.

The letter was signed by Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.?

“At this time, our investigation will focus on possible race discrimination in medical school admissions,” said Dhillon in the letter.?

The College of Medicine receives federal funding from the DOJ, providing grounds for the investigation to occur, according to the letter.
The DOJ is requesting information like standardized test scores, all demographic information collected, such as race, ethnicity and citizenship status, as well as programs applied to and other relationships to the university. The list of required items to be submitted is 46 items long.

The letter also requests any policy changes that were followed by the decision of Students for Fair Admissions v. Presidents and Fellows of Harvard College.

The decision found that specific race-based admissions were unlawful under Title VI, according to the letter.

All of the requested information is to be provided to the DOJ for review by April 24.

“Ohio State is fully compliant with all state and federal regulations and legal rulings regarding admissions,” said Ben Johnson, a university spokesperson. “We’ve received the attached letter and will respond appropriately.”

Dhillon posted a photo signing one of the letters to X this morning, with the caption “Launching a series of civil rights investigations. Another day in paradise!”

The Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine are also being investigated in civil rights cases, according to the New York Times.