Admissions

Information for Domestic Applicants

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Admission to the Graduate School at the UNC-Chapel Hill is competitive and students are selected on the basis of their preparation and ability.

Required Application Materials

The Graduate School relies solely on email to communicate with applicants. Consequently, a current email address is a required field on the application.

Your paid completed application for admission may arrive first with the following items arriving shortly after; however an evaluation does not begin until all the materials have been received.

Please check with the program(s) to which you are applying for additional requirements.

Campus Safety Information

Applicants for admission will be asked several questions regarding criminal pleas, charges and convictions, academic suspensions, and military discharges. Transcripts from every college or university attended must be provided. If additional information is needed, you may be asked to submit information for a criminal background check, including a nominal fee. Failure to provide complete, accurate and truthful information will be grounds to deny or withdraw your admission, or to dismiss you after enrollment. The same actions will occur if you fail to promptly notify the Admissions Office in writing of such charges that occur at any time after you submit the application.

Minimum Graduate Admission Requirements

Along with these minimal requirements, admission decisions are based on a number of factors, including academic degrees and record, statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, test scores, and relevant work experience. There are currently no residency quotas for graduate admission.

Application

Application for admission to the UNC-Chapel Hill Graduate School is provided via an electronic admission application. Required materials (letters of recommendation, transcripts, etc.) should be submitted per the instructions provided below and within the application. How some items arrive varies by program, some are uploaded electronically within the application and some are mailed directly to the program to which you are applying. By submitting an application to UNC-Chapel Hill, consent is granted to university staff to obtain any additional or missing information as needed, including Campus Safety Information mentioned above.

ELECTRONIC GRADUATE ADMISSION APPLICATION

Due to the volume of materials received, and the resulting time required for manual processing, the fastest most secure method of application is the electronic application. Paper applications are available for individuals who are unable to utilize the online application. Requests for paper applications should be made to gradinfo@unc.edu. Once you initiate an electronic application you must finish and submit; we are unable to process paper or payment if an electronic application has not been completed.

A separate application and fee must be submitted for each program to which you apply (maximum of 3 per year).

Most programs admit students for the fall semester only, while very few programs allow spring admission and a few begin in one of the summer sessions. Contact your intended program for the appropriate term of entry for your application.

If offered admission, that offer is specific to the term stated in the admission letter. If you do not register for classes or complete your first semester, you must apply again in a subsequent semester.

Application Deadlines and Fee

Applications and payment must be received before the application deadline. Application fees are non-refundable and no applications will be considered after the graduate program has closed admission. Due to the volume of applications received, the Graduate School recommends that applicants submit applications by December 1.

For individuals who wish to be considered for Graduate School funding, the fall application deadline is January 1. However, most of the funding available to graduate students is program-based and many programs continue to accept applications after the Graduate School January 1 application deadline. Individuals who apply after January 1 will be eligible for program-based funding.

A non-refundable $73 application fee is required for each program to which you apply. Applicants can pay their application fee by credit card (Visa/MasterCard) or mail a check or money order made payable to The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Applications that arrive without the required application fee will remain on file, unprocessed, pending receipt of the application fee. If someone is paying the application fee for you, please ask him or her to include your name as the intended applicant when they submit the check or money order.

Application fee waiver requests are only considered for four groups of domestic applicants listed below. This is a fee waiver process and not a fee payment reimbursement process. Once the application fee is paid by either check or credit card, waiver or reimbursement is no longer an option.

  1. full-time permanent employees of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who submit an application UNPAID and submit a UNC-CH Employee Application Fee Waiverpdf icon, approved by employee Benefits, to the Graduate School along with the online admission application confirmation receipt
  2. current McNair Scholars applying for a graduate program to begin immediately following graduation — with no breaks in enrollment from undergraduate to graduate level (only written official verification signed by current campus McNair Representative will be considered)
  3. U.S. citizens who
    • are currently enrolled in a degree program with no breaks in enrollment from point of entry at the undergraduate level
    • have continuously received need-based financial aid
    • have had no breaks in financial support since onset of support
  4. Summer Pre-Graduate Research Experience (SPGRE) participants applying for a graduate program to begin immediately following graduation with no breaks in enrollment from undergraduate to graduate level (only written official verification signed on letterhead by the current SPGRE Director or Program Coordinator will be considered)

We will be happy to consider your waiver request if you can satisfy these criteria and upon receipt of the required letter of certification. While participation in select scholarship programs or payment waivers granted by other sources do not automatically grant fee waiver eligibility at this campus, we welcome fee waiver requests from participants who meet the above need-based eligibility criteria. Requests must be current with no break in enrollment. Please present a copy of these instructions to the Representative at all institutions that you attended. Request a letter on University letterhead with an original signature certifying the specific items listed above (no form letters, photocopies, or financial aid transcripts, please).

This documentation must cover both your enrollment history and financial aid history from point of entry at the undergraduate level. No other forms of documentation can be accepted. Your application will remain on file, unprocessed, pending receipt of the required documentation. Applicants should select pay by check followed immediately by the required documentation listed below. Fee waiver requests must be received before the deadline for any application to be considered.

Letters of Recommendation

Three current letters of recommendation from persons qualified to evaluate your academic and professional qualifications are required. Depending on the program you select, the application software will prompt you to submit 3 recommender email addresses for electronic submission, or provide you a link to the paper formpdf icon to be used. Some programs who accept electronic documents DO NOT accept paper, please check the program website for specific requirements. Programs may accept original letters in lieu of the recommendation form. If you use the recommendation form, please carefully complete the top portion and provide the mailing address of your intended program. Please also note the right of access statement on the recommendation form; you may or may not elect to sign this waiver.

You should solicit recommendations from individuals who are familiar with your academic achievement and who can address your potential for success in this particular academic setting. If you have been out of school for a number of years and are unable to contact former professors, letters from other individuals who can address your achievement and potential will be accepted. We advise against using generic letters of recommendation such as those provided by campus career planning and placement offices. Those submitting recommendations will send them directly to the intended program electronically, by mail, or return the recommendation to you (in a sealed envelope with their signature over the flap) for inclusion with the other supporting documents you send the program to which you are applying.

Transcripts

Two official transcripts of all post-secondary education (including community colleges, summer sessions and extension programs), bearing the signature of the registrar and the seal of the institution, are required. Transfer credit posted on the transcript of other institutions is not accepted in lieu of transcripts from the institution attended. An original transcript from each institution* is always required.

*Internal (unofficial) transcripts are only acceptable from UNC-Chapel Hill. Please ask the UNC-Chapel Hill University Registrar for an internal transcript at no charge.

Send one transcript to your intended program and one to The Graduate School (CB#4010, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599-4010.)

Applicants may submit transcripts before mid-year grades are posted (final transcripts must then follow). If possible, submit your official transcripts (in sealed envelopes) at the same time as your application. However, if the institution will not release official transcripts directly to the student, they may send the transcripts directly to us.

Standardized Test Scores

Official GRE (or GMAT, MCAT, etc., if accepted by your intended program) General Test scores are required for applicants to all programs except Studio Art, Dentistry (except Oral Biology), and Dramatic Art. Some programs also require the Subject Test.

Standardized test scores must be official (reported directly by ETS) and current (no more than five years old). If you did not specify the UNC-Chapel Hill Graduate School (institution #5816) as a score recipient at the time of taking the test, or if your scores were sent more than one year ago, you must contact the Educational Testing Service to request that your scores are sent to us. No departmental code is required. While photocopies of score reports are useful for informal evaluation, the official report of your score must arrive before admission can be offered. GMAT scores should be sent to UNC (c/o KFBS) Program Code D40-HL ( -50 or -34 as appropriate).

Applicants who already hold a doctoral degree may be exempted from the standardized score requirement at a programs request.  Applicants near completion of a doctoral degree may request an exemption based on the receipt of appropriate degree verification status from the university registrar of the institution currently attending. If the degree or official verification is not received, the standardized scores will remain a requirement.

We recommend that you plan to take the required exam in October (or as early as possible) to allow sufficient time for scores to arrive in time for consideration for Fall admission. Information on computerized testing and score distribution requests is available via ETS, or by calling 1-800-967-1100.

Average scores of applicants offered admissionpdf icon

Statement of Purpose

Most graduate programs require a written statement as a part of your application. How the statement is to arrive varies by program, some are uploaded electronically within the application and some are mailed directly to the program to which you are applying.

The form and content requirements also vary by program so before applying, be sure to read the information and/or instructions specific to your intended program. Your written statement is a critical component of your application for admission, and can sometimes be the determining factor in approval of admittance or financial support. Therefore, your statement should reflect your professional goals, as well as familiarity with the program and faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Mailing Instructions

Applicants are responsible for directing the materials appropriately and according to the instructions provided below. Failure to direct materials per the instructions will result in delays in the processing of your application. The Graduate School cannot be responsible for materials not submitted in accordance with these instructions.

Send to The Graduate School, CB#4010, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-4010:

Send to the Director of Graduate Admissions in the program to which you are applying (program addresses):

The Graduate School prefers to receive applications online, and those received with the application fee paid by credit card are processed the next business day. However, if it is not feasible for you to submit your application electronically, please print and mail a paper applicationpdf icon to the address below. Please allow a minimum of two weeks for mail delivery and processing time.

The Graduate School
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
CB 4010, Bynum Hall
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-4010

Application Status

You may monitor the status of your application at https://admissionsapp.unc.edu/grad/DEFAULT.ASP

You may obtain your Person Identification Number at https://s4.its.unc.edu/SISMisc/pidwmp