A public R1 research university in Chapel Hill, NC, admitting 15.34% of applicants with in-state tuition of $8,994 and a $11,655 average net price.
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public R1 research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, founded in 1789 as the first public university in the United States to hold classes. It enrolls 20,752 undergraduates and 11,553 graduate students across colleges and schools including the College of Arts and Sciences, the Kenan-Flagler Business School, the Gillings School of Global Public Health, the Hussman School of Journalism and Media, the Eshelman School of Pharmacy, and UNC School of Medicine.
Social sciences, biological sciences, psychology, and business account for the largest shares of bachelor's degrees. UNC holds a Doctoral University: Very High Research Activity (R1) Carnegie classification and is accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). UNC is test-optional; submitting SAT or ACT scores is not required.
Official website: unc.edu
UCD scores every college on four pillars: Outcomes, Value, Affordability, and Selectivity. Within peer group A (four-year selective institutions), UNC scores 90.07 overall, rated Excellent. Outcomes (96.65) reflects a 91.17% six-year graduation rate and solid graduate earnings relative to in-state cost. Value scores 95.10, driven by an average net price of $11,655 and the combination of low in-state tuition and accessible financial aid. Affordability scores 52.77. All scores use verified federal data only.
UNC admits 15.34% of applicants, with North Carolina residents receiving a meaningful advantage in the admissions process due to the university's public mission to serve the state. UNC is test-optional; submitting SAT or ACT scores is not required. Students who submit scores typically average 1,439 on the SAT, with the middle 50% ACT range between 28 and 34.
The Early Action deadline is October 15 (non-binding for NC residents and first-generation applicants) and November 1 for Regular Early Action; the Regular Decision deadline is January 15. UNC evaluates applicants on academic record, personal essays, activities, and academic context. Out-of-state applicants are in a more competitive pool; UNC limits non-resident undergraduate enrollment by state law.
Acceptance rate over the last five admission cycles. The trend tells you whether University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.
For North Carolina residents, UNC charges $8,994 in tuition and fees plus $13,804 in room and board, bringing the estimated total cost of attendance to approximately $25,000 before aid. For out-of-state students, tuition is $41,203, bringing the estimated total cost of attendance to approximately $57,000 before aid. The average net price across all enrolled students is $11,655. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $2,004. For families earning between $30,001 and $48,000, the net price averages $3,918. For families earning between $75,001 and $110,000, the net price averages $16,415. For families earning above $110,000, it averages $24,396.
Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.
Application fee: $85 (one-time, due at submission)
Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.
Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.
Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.
UNC completes the large majority of the students it enrolls. The six-year graduation rate is 91.17% for full-time, first-time bachelor's-seeking students. The four-year rate is 84.49%, and first-year retention stands at 96.87%. UNC's federal loan rate of 13.08% and median debt of $14,000 are consistent with peer public flagships.
UNC graduates earn above the median for public flagship universities in the Southeast. Median earnings are $57,057 six years after first enrolling and $72,200 at ten years. At the ten-year mark, 88.02% of former students earn more than a typical high school graduate. The earnings figures reflect UNC's broad program mix, including a large share of graduates in education, healthcare, and social services alongside business and engineering. The combination of low in-state net price and a 13.08% federal loan rate makes UNC one of the better debt-adjusted value propositions among selective public flagships.
Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.
Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.
Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.
Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.
Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.
Share of completer-cohort borrowers paying down at least $1 of principal at the 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year mark. Climbing rates show graduates settling into careers and managing debt; flat or declining rates are a warning.
UNC enrolls 20,752 undergraduates in Chapel Hill, a small college town of approximately 65,000 in the Research Triangle region of central North Carolina. White students account for 53.25% of undergraduates; Asian 16.02%, Black 7.36%, and Hispanic 9.71%. Twenty percent of undergraduates receive Pell grants, and 19.94% are first-generation college students. The Research Triangle (Chapel Hill, Durham, Raleigh) is one of the most concentrated technology and pharmaceutical research regions in the Southeast, with major employers including Research Triangle Park, Duke University Health System, and a growing technology sector.
Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.
Where students live, learn, and connect at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill offers an extensive catalog of programs: 170 distinct programs across 26 majors. Below are its strongest majors, each with flagship programs and typical earnings. Open a major to explore it in depth, or browse the full program catalog.
UNC operates at a 15:1 student-to-faculty ratio. 78.27% of instruction is delivered by full-time faculty. Instructional spending per full-time equivalent student is $33,767 per year. The endowment stands at $5.73 billion. UNC's medical school (UNC Hospitals) and the Gillings School of Global Public Health are major research centers that support biomedical and public health research opportunities for undergraduates.
1,960 instructional faculty across 6 ranks. The rank mix shows how many senior faculty are teaching versus contingent or junior staff, with average salary equated to a 9-month contract.
| Rank | Faculty Count | Share | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full Professors | 767 | 39% | $172,018 |
| Associate Professors | 555 | 28% | $112,618 |
| Assistant Professors | 549 | 28% | $96,339 |
| Instructors | 39 | 2% | $73,734 |
| Lecturers | 43 | 2% | $109,590 |
| No Rank | 7 | 0% | $53,425 |
UNC's core strengths are its UCD score (90.07 Excellent), in-state affordability (tuition $8,994, net price $11,655 on average), and program quality across journalism (Hussman), public health (Gillings), pharmacy, and business (Kenan-Flagler). For North Carolina residents who qualify for need-based aid, UNC delivers one of the best combinations of selectivity and value available at any public university in the Southeast.
The trade-offs: the Selectivity score (85.98) is lower than at the UC flagships or UVA, reflecting a less selective admit rate; out-of-state students pay approximately $57,000 before aid; and ten-year earnings of $72,200 are lower than at Michigan or UVA, partly reflecting the geographic concentration of graduates in North Carolina's job market. Best fit for North Carolina residents who qualify for need-based aid, students targeting Hussman, Kenan-Flagler, or UNC's health sciences programs, and students who want a strong research university in a college-town environment.
The questions below address what students and families most commonly search about UNC: how selective admissions are for in-state versus out-of-state students, how cost and financial aid compare to peer publics, and what graduates earn.
One federal dataset, 3,839 colleges. The median school costs $16,371 a year, admits 78% of applicants, and enrolls 1,259 students. The shape of US higher ed.
Across 1,645 four-year colleges, graduation rates climb steadily with selectivity, from 54% at open-admission schools to 93% at the most exclusive. The gap is real.
For-profit colleges post the highest median net price of any sector and the lowest graduate earnings. They cost more than private nonprofits and pay less than publics.
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