December 14, 2025
Personal statements highlighting race have become another issue in the DEI crackdown within college admissions.
The White House has issued another update in its crackdown of DEI in higher education.
The Trump Administration is looking beyond college departments as it tries to turn away from diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Now, the federal government is looking at college essays used during admissions as potential unlawful, as reported by the Boston Globe.
While many students have used personal essays to describe their academic journeys thus far, the government now deems their writings including race aligned with now-banned DEI practices. Many colleges require these personal statements to show beyond a student’s writing ability, but also highlight a moment where they overcame adversity, proving how they exemplify and contribute to the school’s values.
As some diverse applicants describe their personal obstacles as students of color, the proposed “dog whistle” can now seem part of a ” discriminatory” admissions process. Since the reversal of affirmative action, schools cannot consider identity factors such as race, ethnicity or national origin.
“A lot of students might read [a community prompt] and think, Oh, I’m in the band, I’m the editor of the paper, and I’m going to write about an activity,” said Jayson Weingarten, a senior admissions consultant, before adding how some “read between the lines of what admissions officers are asking — and they’re going to talk about their race, culture, ethnicity, heritage, socioeconomic status, anything like that.“
However, given how students’ livelihoods within and beyond academia become shaped by these experiences, many have wondered what will come of the admissions processes as they foster schools’ communities. With this, the mentioning of these identity markers in college essays has sparked legal issues. The White House now looks at these expressions of students’ voice as another way to bypass the removal of affirmative action.
In a post-affirmative action world, the number of Black and Brown students across many elite universities has seen a decline. An analysis by the Associated Press also confirmed that 20 selective colleges witnessed a significant drop in Black freshman enrollment since the 2023 ruling.
However, some elite schools remain committed to subtly finding students from unique backgrounds through these personal statements, although its future may be in jeopardy. Weingartern finds the continued use of these prompts as a way to still provide pathways for diversity.
“It’s a quiet signal, but it’s an unmistakable act of resistance.”
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