No black applicants accepted for fall at University of California, San Diego's medical school

Jet, August 18, 1997

Nearly 200 Blacks applied to the University of California, San Diego's medical school for the fall semester, and with the recent end of affirmative action, none of them got in.

The medical school considers grades, test scores, interviews, references, socio-economic background, extracurricular activities and volunteer work, among other factors, to make admissions decisions. Until this year, race also could be considered to maintain a diverse student body. Last year, the school accepted seven Black applicants, and three enrolled.

The university's Board of Regents voted two years ago to ban race, ethnicity and gender in admissions. The policy first took effect with the graduate school classes entering in the fall of 1997. It will apply to undergraduates next year.

The sharp drop in minority enrollment at three University of California law schools has prompted a federal investigation into the school system's new race-blind admissions policy. If the government finds a problem, it could withhold $1.2 billion in federal funds for the university, which has a 1996-97 budget of $8.5 billion.