Students admitted to The University of North Carolina's online programs learn the same material and benefit from the same high-quality educational experience as campus-based students. Online classes are designed and taught by the same faculty who teach classes in on-campus programs.  When you graduate from a UNC institution, no distinction is made between online or on-campus credits.  Your degree is from UNC. 

Online and campus experiences are not identical. Students certainly benefit from being immersed in the rich learning environment available on campus. But online learning provides ample opportunities for students to interact with instructors and fellow students and has the advantage of being flexible and convenient. Many students prefer online learning, citing, among other things, a greater willingness to express their views to instructors and classmates.

Your online classmates will generally be like you—people with job and family responsibilities who seek the many benefits of higher education. Faculty members who teach online students frequently praise the high motivation, keen interest, and excellent study habits of "non-traditional" students.

Online classes are not "canned" or "cookie cutter" experiences. Each online course reflects the teaching perspective of the faculty member who designed it and teaches it, and employs technology and learning experiences appropriate to the course content. As instructors transform their classroom courses for the online environment, they often make content revisions they susequently incorporate into their on-campus classes.

On-campus or online, The University of North Carolina is dedicated to maintaining the academic excellence for which it has been known for more than two centuries.

The libraries of all UNC institutions offering online programs and courses support distance-learning students with multiple online resources such as information databases and online journals, as well as research assistance via various e-reference services.  Any student enrolled at any UNC institution may access materials housed at the libraries of all other UNC institutions.  More information about university libraries may be found here.

If you are not near a UNC library, you may make arrangements with your local public library or a local college or university library that is not affiliated with UNC, access the statewide NC LIVE network of electronic resources, or consult NC Knows, which is staffed by reference librarians around the clock. 

• Click here for an up-to-date list of UNC transfer counselors.

Contrary to popular perception, online courses are more—not less—difficult than conventional courses. Prospective students should complete an online self assessment and critically and honestly gauge whether they possess the personal discipline and study skills to successfully complete a college program online.

For specific information about transer credit equivalencies at each UNC campus, click here.

The quality of online courses and programs is extremely important to the faculty and administration of the sixteen campuses of The University of North Carolina. We strive to achieve the highest level of instructional quality and student satisfaction in all our online offerings. Our online offerings adhere to several external standards of quality.

1. All sixteen institutions in The University of North Carolina are accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).  SACS is one of six regional accrediting agencies recognized by the National Board of Education.  Earning college credit from an institution accredited by a regional accrediting agency is the surest way to have your college credit recognized and accepted by employers and other universities. SACS has quality standards for distance education programs that all courses and programs affiliated with The University of North Carolina Online must follow. 
2. Many of our programs and departments are individually accredited by discipline-specific accrediting agencies. We encourage students to inquire of their prospective programs about program-level accreditation.
3. The University of North Carolina endorses the Southern Regional Education Board's (SREB's) Principles of Good Practice. A consortium of the K-20 educational systems of the sixteen southeastern states, SREB works with state governments and other stakeholders to improve teaching and learning. 
   
4. The UNC Online Quality Workgroup, comprising representatives from all campuses, works in partnership with The UNC Faculty Assembly to continuously update campuses on best practices in online teaching and learning. Through the work of this group, all UNC institutions have documented the processes and policies they use to ensure that online courses are of the highest quality.

If you are located in North Carolina, you will pay a tuition rate that is comparable to the tuition rate you would pay on campus, either as a North Carolina resident or an out-of-state student. You may obtain more information by clicking on the "tuition" links provided with each online program description. If you are a distance education student who is not enrolled in on-campus classes, you will not be charged certain fees that apply only to on-campus students. You will receive more information about these policies when you contact the program in which you are interested. If you are a non-North Carolina resident living outside of North Carolina, you will pay a tuition rate established by the program to cover its costs of instruction. Rates vary by program. Check with the program in which you are interested for more information.

Anyone seeking federal financial assistance should complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). A student eligible to receive federal financial aid who, to fulfill program requirements, enrolls in classes at both a UNC institution and a community college during any given term may report, for financial aid purposes, hours taken at both institutions. Financial aid offices at both campuses must be involved in this process.

For more information on in-state financial assistance, visit the website of the College Foundation of North Carolina.

See also this page for additional links and information. 

If you need help or more information than is provided on this website about credit transfers, applications procedures, or admissions, please contact representatives of the programs or institutions to which you are considering applying by clicking on the "Contact me about this program" tab at the top of each program page.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about this site, were unable to get information about a program or a reply from a UNC institution, or  just don’t know whom to ask, please use the Contact Us Web Form.

A college transfer program is a set of courses that has been designed to transfer to most four-year colleges and universities in North Carolina. The set of courses includes a 44-semester-hour general education core and 20 additional semester-hours of transfer credit. In the North Carolina Community College System, Associate in Arts (AA) and Associate in Science (AS) degree programs are included in the CAA as college transfer programs.

To earn an Associate in Arts (AA) degree you must complete a planned program of study that comprises a minimum of 64 and a maximum of 65 semester hours of college transfer courses and emphasizes competencies in reading, writing, oral communication, fundamental mathematical skills, and basic computer use.

If you complete this program with a grade of “C” or better in each course and an overall GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale, you will, upon admission to a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina, receive at least 64 hours of academic credit at that university.

The AA program comprises the general education core plus a minimum of 20 semester hours' credit of college transfer general education, elective, and/or pre-major courses.

The general education core of the AA program includes 44 semester hours' study in the areas of English composition, humanities and fine arts, social and behavioral sciences, and natural sciences and mathematics:

• English Composition—6 semester hours' credit
• Humanities/Fine Arts—12 semester hours' credit comprising four courses—at least one of which must be a literature course—from at least three of the following discipline areas: music, art, drama, dance, foreign languages, interdisciplinary humanities, literature, philosophy, and religion. (Three semester hours' credit in Speech/Communication may be substituted for 3 semester hours' credit in Humanities/Fine Arts.)
• Social/Behavioral Sciences—12 semester hours' credit comprising four courses—at least one of which must be a history course—from at least three of the following discipline areas: anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology.
• Natural Sciences—8 semester hours' credit comprising two courses, including accompanying laboratory work, from the biological and physical science disciplines.
• Mathematics—6 semester hours' credit comprising two courses, one in introductory mathematics and one from among other quantitative subjects such as computer science and statistics.

Note:

Students also must meet the foreign language and/or health and physical education requirements, if applicable, prior to or after transfer to the senior institution.

The Comprehensive Articulation Agreement between the North Carolina Community College System and The University of North Carolina ensures transfer of 64 semester hours credit to students who earn AA degrees. One additional hour may be included in a student's AA degree program but transfer of this 65th hour is not ensured.

View the North Carolina Community College System Associate in Arts Curriculum Standard. 

To earn an Associate in Science (AS) degree you must complete a planned program of study that comprises a minimum of 64 and a maximum of 65 semester hours of college transfer courses and emphasizes competencies in reading, writing, oral communication, fundamental mathematical skills, and basic computer use.

If you complete this program with a grade of “C” or better in each course and an overall GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale, you will, upon admission to a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina, receive at least 64 hours of academic credit at that university.

The AS program comprises the general education core plus a minimum of 20 semester hours' additional credit, at least 14 of these additional hours must be earned in college transfer mathematics, natural sciences, or computer science courses.  The remainder may be selected from general education, pre-major, or elective courses.

The general education core of the AS program includes 44 semester hours' study in the areas of English composition, humanities and fine arts, social and behavioral sciences, and natural sciences and mathematics:

• English Composition—6 semester hours' credit comprising two courses, Expository Writing plus one of the following three courses:  Argument-Based Research, Literature- Based Research, Professional Research and Reporting.
• Humanities/Fine Arts—9 semester hours' credit comprising three courses—one of which must be a literature course—from at least three of the following disciplines: art, drama, dance, foreign languages, interdisciplinary humanities, music, philosophy, and religion. (Three semester hours' credit in Speech/Communication may be substituted for 3 semester hours' credit in Humanities/Fine Arts.)
• Social/Behavioral Sciences—9 semester hours' credit comprising three courses—one of which must be a history course—from at least three of the following discipline areas: anthropology, economics, geography, political science, psychology, and sociology.
• Natural Sciences—8 semester hours credit comprising a minimum two-course sequence from the following courses: General Biology I and II, General Chemistry I and II, College Physics I and II, General Physics I and II.
• Mathematics—12 semester hours' credit comprising one course in mathematics at the precalculus algebra level or above, one course at either the higher mathematics level or from other quantitative subject areas such as computer science and statistics, and six semester hours' credit from courses designated as Natural Sciences/Mathematics general education transfer courses.

Note:

Students also must meet the foreign language and/or health and physical education requirements, if applicable, prior to or after transfer to the senior institution.

The Comprehensive Articulation Agreement between the North Carolina Community College System and The University of North Carolina ensures transfer of 64 semester hours' credit to students who earn AS degrees.  One additional hour may be included in a student's AS degree program but transfer of this 65th hour is not ensured. 

View the North Carolina Community College System Associate in Science Curriculum Standard. 

• The Comprehensive Articulation Agreement (CAA) enables North Carolina community college graduates of two-year associate in arts and associate in science degree programs who are admitted to constituent institutions of the University of North Carolina to transfer with junior status.
• Universities may not place requirements on students transferring under the CAA that are not required of their native students.

• Transfer students will be considered to have satisfied the UNC Minimum Course Requirements (MCR) in effect at the time of their graduation from high school if they have
  1. received the associate in arts, the associate in science, or,
  2. completed the 44-hour CAA general education transfer core, or
  3. completed at least six (6) semester hours in degree-credit in each of the following subjects: English, mathematics, the natural sciences and social and behavioral sciences, and (for students who graduated from high school after 2004) a second language.
• Community college students who have completed the general education transfer core will be considered to have fulfilled the institution-wide, lower division general education requirements of the receiving institution.
• To be eligible to benefit from the CAA, a student must have an overall GPA of at least a 2.0 on a 4.0 scale and a grade of "C" or better in all CAA courses.
• Community college graduates who have earned 64 semester hours in approved transfer courses with a grade of "C" or better and an overall GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale will receive at least 64 semester hours of academic credit upon admission to a university. Under special circumstances, a university may choose to accept additional credit hours.
• Requirements for admission to some major programs may require additional pre-specialty courses beyond the general education transfer core courses taken at the community college. Students entering such programs may need more than two academic years of course work to complete their baccalaureate degree, depending on requirements of the program.
• All courses approved for transfer in the Comprehensive Articulation Agreement are designated as fulfilling general education, pre-major or elective requirements. Although general education and pre-major courses also may be used as electives, elective courses may not be used to fulfill general education requirements.

View the complete Comprehensive Articulation Agreement

The general education core is a set of courses (44 semester hours) that, when completed, meets the freshmen/sophomore general education requirements at all UNC institutions.

The core specifically includes the following for the Associate in Arts degree:

• English Composition (6 semester hours)
• Humanities/Fine Arts (12 semester hours)
• Social/Behavioral Sciences (12 semester hours)
• Mathematics (6 semester hours)
• Natural Science (8 semester hours)

Total: 44 semester hours

The core specifically includes the following for the Associate in Science degree:

• English Composition (6 semester hours)
• Humanities/Fine Arts (9 semester hours)
• Social/Behavioral Sciences (9 semester hours)
• Natural Sciences and Mathematics (20 semester hours and includes a minimum of 6 semester hours in Mathematics and 8 semester hours in Natural Sciences)

Total: 44 semester hours

Faculty and staff of The University of North Carolina may take up to two courses per year tuition-free (including online courses).  The Human Resources office of your institution will have a form for you to complete to request authorization for the tuition waiver. Complete this form and submit it along with the required course application (described for each course in the Courses section) to the campus offering the course in which you are interested.

Most of the online programs offered by University of North Carolina institutions are entirely online or use materials that you can use at home. Some programs, however, require site-based sessions for a variety of purposes (such as orientation, testing, and clinical or laboratory experiences). Each program listing provides information about site-based activities that are required, and you should read the program description carefully and decide whether you can meet the site-based requirements.