"The president and the Republican Party have launched a relentless campaign for what they call merit-based admissions and against any aspect of the holistic admissions process they've deemed a "proxy" for race. The question of whether admissions professionals can continue do their jobs under those circumstances was a constant undercurrent of the 2025 National Association for College Admission Counseling conference last week. But despite the concerns of attendees, the association and many panelists sent a clear message that all hope isn't lost for the admission process as we know it."
"If you came into the profession [since then], my fear is that there might have been some things you might have taken for granted. Fast-forward five years ... we're scrubbing DEI from websites, and people are shocked, dismayed. But if you've been here for a while, you know good and well that we're going back to a version of the work that we've seen. This is not new to us,"
Admissions professionals face growing public misunderstanding as the president and the Republican Party push 'merit-based' admissions and attack holistic measures viewed as proxies for race. The conflict was a persistent theme at a major 2025 admissions conference, raising questions about whether professionals can continue usual practices. The association and many participants emphasized that the established admissions process can persist. Efforts to increase racial diversity surged after George Floyd's murder in 2020, leaving many staff with limited experience of pre-2020 norms. Institutions are removing DEI elements, but experienced administrators say the field has seen similar cycles before.
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