As President Donald Trump pushes for more “fairness” in college admissions, the application process for high school seniors across the country has begun to shift. Since January, the Trump administration has withheld federal funding from several American universities, including Columbia, Harvard and Brown. They cited alleged antisemitism and civil rights violations as the reasons but, in reality, the targets for this cut were the recent pro-Palestine protests and Diversity Equity and Inclusion programs.
In order to restore federal funding, many universities have made deals with the new administration. The terms of these deals vary, but most include financial penalties. For example, Columbia was fined $200 million, and requires more transparent admissions policies. Now, the university must disclose the applicant’s race, gender, grade-point average (GPA) and test scores to the federal government. The executive order justifying the policy states, “Greater transparency is essential to exposing unlawful practices and ultimately ridding society of shameful, dangerous racial hierarchies.”
The push for transparency within college admissions comes on the heels of the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling against affirmative action.These new orders aim to enforce that ruling by ensuring the universities are prioritizing “objective” measures.
However, while Trump aims for a more “fair” admission process, this new prioritization may do the opposite of what is intended. Considering parents of students from a more affluent background tend to spend more money on their child’s education, Trump’s executive order will give an advantage to those students because they can pay for tutors and SAT preparation courses. Paideia senior Viraj Chaudhry ’26 comments, “Diversity is an important part of the college experience, and this emphasis on ‘objectiveness’ makes the entirety of it more one dimensional, taking an important aspect of college away.”
Additionally, the question arises: if Trump wants a more “fair” admissions process why has he done nothing regarding legacy? Legacy gives students preferential treatment based on their parents’ accreditation rather than their own merit, however, Trump has yet to eliminate it.
While it is unknown how these new applications will be evaluated, it is certain that the emphasis on grades and scores will be predominant. For Paideia students, the changes add a layer of uncertainty to an already stressful process.
