Hegseth Orders Merit-Based Admissions At Military Academies

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memo on Friday ordering the return to merit-based admissions policies at America’s military academies.

“The Military Service Academies (MSA) are elite warfighting institutions with long histories of producing world class military officers. The Department owes it to our Nation, our Service members, and the young Americans applying to the MSAs to ensure admissions to these prestigious institutions are based exclusively on merit,” Hegseth wrote.

The memo directs the secretaries of the military departments to “certify within 30 days that, for purposes of the 2026 MSA admissions cycle, as well as all subsequent admissions cycles,” that the military schools’ admissions offices will “[a]pply no consideration of race, ethnicity, or sex” and “[o]ffer admission based exclusively on merit.” “Merit-based scores,” the memo adds, “may give weight to unique athletic talent or other experiences such as prior military service or performance at a MSA preparatory school.”

Service academies are further instructed to “rank-order candidates by merit-based scores within each nomination category” as specified under federal law. It is expected that those who are ranked the highest under such a system “should receive appointments.”

The directive builds upon a separate memo signed by Hegseth in late January, which stipulates, “No DoD Component will establish sex-based, race-based, or ethnicity-based goals for organizational composition, academic admission, or career fields.” Both orders come as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to eradicate divisive and discriminatory DEI policies from the military and federal government.

[READ: How DEI Left Service Academies In A ‘State Of Decay,’ And How Trump Can Fix It]

The use of race-based admissions standards has been a persistent issue engulfing America’s military academies for years. Former West Point and Naval Academy instructors previously told The Federalist about their purported experiences with such policies and how many students are “very aware” of their existence.

Friday’s memo came the same day Acting Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Timothy Dill signed a directive ordering a review of all “educational materials” within the libraries of the Pentagon’s service academies and war colleges that promote “divisive concepts and gender ideology.” Much like Hegseth’s memo, Dill’s edict seeks to comply with the defense secretary’s late January order.

“The sole focus of the Department’s military educational institutions (MEIs), including the War Colleges and the Military Service Academies, is to train and educate the world’s finest military leaders in support of that core mission,” Dill’s memo reads.