Defense Secretary Orders Military Service Academies to Adopt Merit-Based Admissions Policies

Pete Hegses gave military secretaries 30 days to prove they would use merit-based admissions after 2026.

The US Academy of Military Service will soon have to prove that the admission process will not take into account race, ethnicity, or gender, and instead decide on an appointment based solely on merit.

On May 9, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses issued a memorandum ordering within 30 days that he would use a merit-based admission process for the 2026 admission cycle and all subsequent cycles. This new memo is part of a broader initiative led by Hegseth, implementing merit-based policies and color blindness policies across the military.

This policy is set to affect the US Military Academy in West Point, New York. US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

In the 2023 case of Student Landmarks for Fair Entrance, the US Supreme Court opposed a policy of positive action that competes in the university admission process. A majority of the court overturned long-standing racial-based admissions policies, with a deliberate exception for the military service academy. Commissioner John Roberts, who wrote numerous opinions, said there may be “potentially clear benefits” in ensuring service academies continue to enroll in schools in particular.

Advocacy groups such as Students for Fair Enrollment continue to raise legal challenges for the continued use of race in service academies admissions. So far, these litigators have failed to have the Service Academy cancel their racially-based admissions policy through legal action. Last February, the Supreme Court rejected an injunction request that challenged the continued use of West Point’s race-based factors in the admissions process.

Hegseth’s order provides a new way to eliminate positive policy of action outside the court system.

In his note, Hegseth wrote that the merit-based admission process for these military service academies “ensures that only the most qualified candidates are recognized, trained and ultimately asked to lead the best fighting forces in history.”

“Picking the best and best people undermines lethality, our preparedness for combat, and our culture of excellence in our military,” added Heggs.

The Secretary of Defense said the Service Academy may adopt a merit system that takes into account athletic ability, previous military service and student performance at the Service Academy Preparatory School.

In March, the Naval Academy announced that race would no longer be considered as a factor in the admissions process.

The Military and Air Force Academy were tracked in April and also announced that they would stop considering race as a factor in their admission decisions. All three service academies made these presentations, demanding a reprieve from the ongoing challenges students brought for fair admission.