CareerOneStop, a federally funded career and education database designed to help women, students of color, and people with disabilities find college scholarships, is facing a significant overhaul as part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to dismantle Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs.
The U.S. Department of Labor-sponsored platform positions itself as a “source for employment information and inspiration” with “tools to help job seekers, students, businesses and career professionals.” Currently, it lists hundreds of scholarships specifically geared toward underrepresented groups, women, and minority students, searchable by criteria including race, sex, LGBTQ+ status and ethnicity. That catalog is about to shrink considerably.
As of Friday, CareerOneStop still featured hundreds of funding opportunities with demographic restrictions, according to reporting from The Washington Post. Among them were a $10,000 scholarship for African American female law students and $16,000 fellowships for minority students pursuing doctoral science degrees. The administration is actively examining federal tools and resources that facilitate or promote identity-based funding.
The shift extends beyond CareerOneStop itself. The National Scholarship Providers Association found that the share of scholarships it tracks with eligibility requirements based on race, ethnicity and gender declined from 15% in 2023 to 11% this year.
President Donald Trump has been direct about his intentions, stating he plans to “terminate every diversity, equity, and inclusion program across the entire Federal Government.” During his first week in office, he signed multiple executive actions to eliminate what the administration described as “radical and wasteful DEI programs and preferencing.”
The momentum behind these changes began in January when the White House characterized Biden-era inclusion initiatives as “forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs.” That language signaled where enforcement priorities would land once Trump returned to office.
In February 2025, the U.S. Department of Education sent letters to colleges and universities nationwide, labeling race-conscious student programming as unlawful racial discrimination and threatening to withhold federal funding from institutions that didn’t comply within 14 days.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers framed the push in terms of merit. “President Trump was resoundingly elected with a clear mandate to end divisive, racist policies and restore merit and efficiency,” she told The Post. It’s a message the administration has moved swiftly to execute across federal agencies and educational institutions.
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