Applying for Residency on the Common Application

When you fill out the Common Application, you'll see in our "Member Questions" section that we ask you to fill out some information regarding your residency:

If you answer "yes" to the question "Do you believe you may qualify for in-state tuition?", then we'll ask you to provide further details about your residency (for instance, when you got your driver's license, if you've filed state taxes, and whether you're registered to vote). You'll also be asked to answer these questions for one of your parents. These questions help us determine your residency, so that we know whether or not to consider you a NC resident.

If you've applied to us before or if you're a counselor, you'll notice that this section is new. We're now asking all students who believe they qualify for in-state tuition to provide this information with their application. It's helpful for us to have this information up-front, rather than asking students to fill out long residency applications after they've applied. We're trying to keep things simple, for students and for us!

Below are a few of the common questions we're hearing about this section of the Common App:

How do I know if I qualify for in-state tuition? 
Residency classification is complicated, and each case is considered on an individual basis. Generally, a student whose domicile has been in North Carolina for at least 12 months prior to the term they enroll is considered an in-state student. To learn more about how we determine residency, go to Ask Admissions and type in "residency".

Which parent should I choose to provide residency information for? 
If both parents live in NC, you may choose either one. If your parents don't live together but share custody of you, choose a parent that lives in NC. If someone other than a parent has legal guardianship of you, fill out the information for that person (but if one or both of your parents have legal guardianship, you should provide information for a parent).

I'm not a U.S. citizen, but I live in North Carolina. Is there additional information I need to submit? 
Depending on your visa status, you may still qualify for in-state residency. If you're not a U.S. citizen, we'll ask you to fill out a supplemental residency form and provide documentation of your legal status in the U.S. (i.e., your Permanent Resident card or visa status). After you apply, we'll request this information by listing it on your To-Do List in MyCarolina, but you're welcome to be proactive and send us this information at the same time you submit your application.

Other questions? Please leave a comment below!

Consider Carolina! The Common App is Now Live.

If you're a rising high school senior, and you're thinking about college, we hope that you'll consider Carolina. Here you can build a circle of friends who will inspire you to do great things.

Preview of the new admissions website coming soon!

We also wanted to let you know that the Common Application (CA) is now live. The UNC section (known as "Member Questions" on the CA website), which is what you'll need to fill out before your application is complete, is still being finalized. We expect that it will be available by the first of September, if not sooner. In the meantime, however, you can go ahead and start working on your essay questions. To help, one of our students has recently posted a series of essay-writing tips.

Additionally, we are proud to partner with the College Foundation of North Carolina, a free service of the State of North Carolina that helps students plan, apply, and pay for college. CFNC is a partnership of Pathways, the N.C. State Education Assistance Authority, and College Foundation, Inc.

We have chosen for CFNC to link to the Common Application for students who are interested in applying to Carolina. A link to the Common Application (which will include the additional questions for UNC) will be available on the CFNC website in early fall. If you attend a N.C. public high school, you can use CFNC.org to send your official high school transcript to us for free.

We encourage you to take advantage of all the free career and college planning resources on CFNC.org. By visiting this site, you will be guided to the best option for applying to your choice of North Carolina colleges or universities.

The first deadline for Fall 2014 admission to Carolina isn't until October 15, which will give you plenty of time to complete the application and the UNC member questions. Students who need more time have until our final deadline of January 10 to apply. Neither deadline is binding and all admitted students have until May 1 to enroll.

Very soon the Office of Undergraduate Admissions will also be launching an exciting new website, which provides even more reasons to consider Carolina. The students featured on our site will give you an inside look at their own communities so that you can start imagining what your life might be like if you decide to join our campus one day. Stay tuned!

Transfer Deadline Reminder and FAQs

Good morning! The final application deadline for transfer students is right around the corner! Below are some of the questions we've been getting lately; just let us know if there's anything else we can answer.

Which application should I submit?
All transfer applicants, except those wishing to transfer directly into the School of Nursing as juniors, may apply through the Common Application. We also accept transfer applications submitted through the College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC), but please note that certain majors must apply through the Common Application. Click here to find out which application you should use.

What must be submitted by the deadline?

Only your portion of the application, your payment method, and your UNC Supplement (if you’re applying via the Common Application) must be submitted by the deadline. Please note that you don't need to submit the UNC supplement if you're applying through CFNC. Other materials, such as your official transcript and test scores (if applicable), may arrive shortly after the deadline if necessary. 

How do I determine my standing?

To be eligible for transfer admission, you'll need to have graduated high school at least 12 months prior to the semester you wish to enroll. If you have fewer than 15 transferable hours, you'll be classified as a transfer student with first-year advanced standing. Appropriate consideration will be given to your college-level work.

• First-year transfer: Fewer than 15 transferable hours
• Sophomore: 15–50.9 transferable hours
• Junior: 51 or more transferable hours

No more than 75 hours from a four-year school and 64 hours from a two-year school can be transferred to the University and applied toward the hours necessary for graduation.


Do you require essays?
We ask transfer students to submit one essay. Here is the prompt: Please provide a statement of 250 – 500 words that addresses your reasons for transferring and the objectives you hope to achieve.

You'll also have the option to submit an additional statement if you feel there is any other information you'd like to provide that hasn't already been covered in other parts of the application.

Do I need to send a letter of recommendation?
We don't require letters of recommendation for transfer applicants. However, if you'd like to submit one, you can have your teacher/professor email it to us at uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu.

**If you're applying to one of the professional schools, you'll want to check their application instructions for any additional requirements.**

Check out our website for more information on applying as a transfer student .

7 Reasons to Apply to Carolina

Happy New Year! We hope your 2013 is shaping up to be the best yet. As a reminder, if you haven't already applied for first-year admission to Carolina, our final deadline of January 7, 2013 is just days away. You still have time, so why not make a New Year's resolution to apply to Carolina?

Need another reason? We'll give you seven. Carolina students not only dream big, they possess the initiative to make those dreams a reality. In the early days of this new year, we thought you might enjoy learning about how seven of our current students are taking advantage of the endless opportunities Carolina offers.

1. Alfredo interned at Goldman Sachs in New York.
2. Mallory pays it forward as co-president of Carolina Firsts.
3. Brandon is a tutor for Carolina's Summer Bridge Program.
4. Yu is the founder of Young Scholars International.
5. Madison spent two months in Jordan studying Arabic.
6. Whitney is completing an honors thesis related to mental health in adolescents.
7. Fedor will research biological noise in desensitization.

These are just seven of the countless Carolina students who are making their mark on the world in their own way. Read about more students.

If you applied to Carolina already, we thank you for your application, and we are enjoying getting to know you. Once you do apply, please log into your MyCarolina account to check the status of your application.

We wish you the best as you set your own goals for a happy and prosperous New Year.

FAQs this Week

Early Action is right around the corner, so we're getting lots of questions from you all about your applications. Here are the most common questions we're getting this week--let us know in the comments below what else you are wondering about!

I submitted my application. When will I get confirmation that you’ve received it?
We recently began downloading submitted applications from both the Common Application and from CFNC, so we have started sending daily emails to students confirming receipt of their application and telling them how to track the status of their application online. After you submit your application, you will receive this email within two days. The email will be sent to the email address you indicated on your application. If it's been more than two days since you submitted your application and you haven't heard from us, first double-check your spam filter. If you don't find it there, you can email us at unchelp@admissions.unc.edu to request that we resend the email. (You might want to add unchelp@admissions.unc.edu to your safe-sender list, as that is the email address we'll use to send you information.)

What must be submitted by the October 15 deadline for Early Action? 
Only your application, your payment method, and your UNC-CH Supplement (if you're applying via the Common App) must be received by the deadline. All other materials, such as your letter of recommendation, test scores, transcript, and School Form, may arrive after the deadline. 

How late can I take the SAT/ACT?
We can consider scores for tests taken through November for Early Action, and through December for Regular Decision, so long as the scores are sent promptly. If you are planning to take the October or November tests, indicate on the test that you would like your scores to be sent to us (our SAT code is 5816 and our ACT code is 3162), so that the testing service will send us your scores as soon as they are available.

Can I submit an Arts Supplement to Carolina through the Common App? 
We don't accept the arts supplement though the Common App, but we do still want to hear about your artistic achievements! The best way to share this information is on the main part of your application. You can list it in the Extracurricular Activities section of the application, and you're welcome to include a URL of where your work can be found online. Please don't send DVDs or CDs, as we just can't review them. It's best to post your work online, or you could create a resume-style document that includes a brief description of your work and 1-2 samples--this can be sent directly to us at uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu.

**Update 10/31: this comment stream has gotten unwieldy, so I am closing it to comments. Please see our latest FAQ post.***

FAQ Monday

It's not actually Monday but it feels like it after the long holiday weekend, so let's talk FAQs. Here are some of the questions we've been getting on the phones and by email lately:

How do I submit my teacher recommendation and counselor form on the Common Application? Go to the School Forms section on the left-hand side of the page. From here, you'll enter the email addresses of your teacher(s) and counselor. The Common App will email them with instructions on how to submit these materials. You'll want to follow up with your teacher and counselor to make sure they've received the email from the Common App and they have everything they need to submit these materials on your behalf. 

When filling out the Common Application, will my responses get cut off if they are too long? The free-response sections of the Common Application do have character limits, so you may need to edit down some of your responses to fit. You can double-check how your responses will appear by going to the Print Preview section once you've completed all the required questions. This preview will show you exactly what the admissions committee will see as they review your application.

Your essays will always appear in their entirety as these are documents that you upload separately. These do not get cut off if you exceed the recommended word limit--though we do appreciate it when you stay close to the requested length!



Where are the two essays on the Common Application? One essay is on the main part of the Common Application, and the second is on our school-specific supplemental form. Learn more about our essays.

More questions about the Common App? See their Support Center.


Will you accept my SAT/ACT scores if I submit them before or after the application deadline? Yes, you can submit test scores at any time. If they arrive before your application is submitted, we'll simply file them until your application arrives. And it's fine if your test scores arrive after the deadline as well. We can consider scores submitted through November for Early Action and through December for Regular Decision.

Does UNC grant credit for AP/IB/SAT Subject exams? Yes! See the full chart here.

Who is the admissions representative for my region/school? We don't divide our staff by geographic area, so any of our admissions counselors are happy to help you. Whether you call or email, you'll be directed to the dean of the day who can answer any of your questions about Carolina and applying for admission.

How will my college courses transfer to UNC? See our Transferring Your Courses page for lots of information about how we review transfer credit. The official evaluation of transfer credit is done in the spring after you've applied and been admitted to the University, but this page will help you predict how your previous coursework would transfer here. 

Any other questions? Please use the comments to ask!

Anatomy of an Application: ECs and Honors

This is the second in our Anatomy of an Application series. Last week we discussed how your application materials all come together. This week, ECs and honors. 

My colleague Melissa Kotacka wrote on the blog a couple years ago that your extracurriculars are like the sprinkles on the cake of your application. Through your ECs, we get to find out what you're interested in, how you've spent your time, and how you interact with your community. It also helps us imagine what kind of impact you could have if you joined the UNC community.

When you get to this section, you'll be asked to report how much time you've committed to each activity and which years you took part in each. You'll also be asked to briefly explain each activity, including any leadership positions held or honors won. You'll quickly realize there's not a lot of space for lengthy explanations, so your challenge is to be as concise as possible, while also giving us all the interesting details.

Your EC list is by necessity a quick snapshot of your extracurricular contributions, but that doesn't mean it can't still be a really colorful, interesting, and engaging snapshot. Focus on your primary activities and list the most important ones first. Think about what your specific contributions and achievements have been in the activity, and be sure you're communicating those things. For instance, don't just tell us you've played field hockey for 4 years. Instead, how about "Play defense on JV and Varsity field hockey teams. As unofficial spirit leader, I've raised awareness of the team's efforts within the school. Voted co-captain senior year."

So what kinds of activities are we looking for? There really isn't any formula. And we're not looking to see that every student is "well-rounded" either. We know that some students have a wide range of interests and do lots of different types of activities, while others are specialists who focus on one or two things. Most people fall somewhere in between these two. So we're not looking for well-rounded students, we're looking for a well-rounded class. And by enrolling all different kinds of students with all different kinds of interests, that's what we get.

You can include whatever activities are important to you in your list, whether it was something you did through your school, community, or church, or whether it was done independently or with friends or family. We just want to understand how you have spent your time, what you're passionate about, and how you've contributed to your community.

Keep in mind, though, that a longer list is not necessarily a better list. In fact, it's really hard to digest a long list that seems to include every imaginable activity. Think about the big picture and where your impact has been most significant. Consider grouping together similar activities. If you've gone on mission trips with your church each summer since freshman year, you can group these together as one item, then list out the specifics of where you went and what you did in the explanation field.

You'll also fill out a separate section for the honors you have won. It's really helpful if you include a short descriptor for the honor to help us understand what it is. The "Sarah Bigdeal Smith Award" might be a huge honor within your school, but we've never heard of it! So, you might list it as "Smith Service Award. One of two juniors selected by faculty based on my work with local homeless shelter."

And last piece of advice: This is not the time to be humble! Don't be shy about sharing what you've accomplished. If bragging doesn't come naturally to you, ask Mom, Dad or a caring friend for help. They'll be more than happy to point out all your stellar personal qualities and hard-earned honors.

Good luck! Please just let me know if you have any questions.

Anatomy of an Application: How It All Comes Together

The Common App and CFNC are now up, so many of you are already thinking about your applications. (If you're applying via the Common App, you'll notice our school-specific supplement is not yet available, but you can expect it to be up within the next week or two.) As you start working on your application, I thought it would be helpful to discuss in a little more detail the various parts of the application and how you will submit them to us. I'll start today with a big-picture explanation of how all the pieces of your application come together once they arrive in our office. 

When you submit your application either through the Common Application or through CFNC, we assemble all the parts together into an electronic “folder.” It really is just like the old days when we filed paper copies of all of your application materials in manila folders, except now we save lots of trees and we don’t have rows of filing cabinets in our basement! These days, most materials arrive in our office electronically, but we do still get a lot of paper mail, which is scanned and filed electronically. As you submit your application, transcript, letter of recommendation, test scores, and counselor statement, we link each of these documents to your electronic folder. When we’ve received all the requested items, the file is “ready to read” and goes off to the admissions committee for review.

So, how can you know if we’ve received all of your application materials? After you submit your application, we’ll send you an email with instructions on how to access your MyCarolina page. Through MyCarolina, you’ll be able to view your Admissions To-Do List, which will list any outstanding items. Please be aware, though, that in the busiest weeks of application submission, it can take us a few weeks to sort through all of the documents that students are sending and update your To-Do List. Please don’t stress if you see an item on your To-Do List that you know you (or your counselor/teacher) already submitted. We’ll catch up with you as soon as we can.

In the coming weeks, I’ll go into more detail about the various parts of the application, so look for more soon! As always, please leave a comment below with any questions you have.

The Common Application is Now Available

Hard to believe it's already August, but indeed here we are on August 1 which means the Common Application is now live! If you're planning to apply through the Common Application, you can now create your account on their website and begin getting familiar with the application. Don't stress, though, because our first application deadline, October 15, is still two and a half months away. You have plenty of time.

If you apply through the Common Application, you'll also submit a UNC-Chapel Hill Supplement form. The supplement isn't available yet, but should be up within a couple weeks.

If you're planning to apply through CFNC, that application will be available by mid-September.

And whether you're applying this year or not, we hope you'll go ahead and create a MyCarolina page, which is a portal just for prospective students. Through MyCarolina, you'll get information about Carolina that's specific to your interests. You'll also be able to track the status of your application through MyCarolina and view your admission decision when it's ready. If you're already in our system because we met you at a college fair or you already created an account, you can log in here. You can also reset your password by clicking "Forgot/Reset your password."

Below are some of the most frequently-asked questions we get as students begin their applications, and you can also review the detailed directions for applying as a first-year or transfer applicant.

More questions? Just leave us a comment below.

Should I apply through the Common Application or through the College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC)?
If you're applying as a first-year, you can choose whichever is more convenient for you. The questions and requirements are the same, so it does not matter to us which you choose. You’ll want to find out whether the other colleges you’re planning to apply to accept either of these applications, as that may help you decide which application to complete.

If you’re applying as a transfer, check out our Transfer page to find out which application you should use.

What are the deadlines?
View our deadlines here. Not sure which deadline to choose? Check out this post, where I wrote about the difference between our two deadlines.

How many essays will I need to submit?
You can see this year's essay prompts in this blog post. 

How do I submit my supplemental materials?
When you complete either the Common Application or the CFNC application online, the instructions will give you full details on how to submit your counselor statement, teacher recommendation, and transcript.

If you’re applying through the Common Application, you’ll indicate on the application which teacher(s) and counselor will submit materials on your behalf. You’ll enter their email contact information, and the Common App will send them instructions on how to submit the materials. They’ll submit the information directly to the Common App, so they’ll only have to upload it once no matter how many schools you apply to. You’ll want to touch base with your teacher and counselor to make sure they’ve gotten the email from the Common App, and they are all set to submit the materials.

 If you’re submitting a CFNC application, you’ll need to ask your teacher and counselor to submit these materials directly to us. Your teacher may submit the letter of recommendation by email (uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu) or by mail. Your counselor may submit your Counselor Statement and official transcript through a secure electronic delivery service (Docufide or Naviance), or through the mail. Talk to your counselor to find out which method he/she prefers.

No matter which application you use, you'll need to have your official SAT or ACT scores sent to us directly from the testing service. We accept scores taken through November for Early Action and through December for Regular Decision. 

How many letters of recommendation should I send?
We only require one letter for first-year applicants and generally find one letter to be sufficient. However, if you’d like to submit additional letters, you’re welcome to do so.

Can I submit additional materials (resume, etc?)
You’re welcome to submit additional materials by sending them directly to us by email (uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu) or by mail. Keep in mind these materials can’t be returned and we can’t view any multimedia materials submitted by mail (CDs, DVDs, bulky portfolios, etc). If you’d like to share artwork or multimedia work, the best method is to display it online through a website, blog, or online portfolio. You can then include the URL in your application.

Whenever you submit materials to us by mail or email, it’s very helpful if you include your full name and date of birth, so we can easily match it to your application.

A New Year...and Common App FAQs

It’s the first week of classes and campus is bustling. I walked by the Old Well on my way back from lunch yesterday and there was a whole line of students getting ready to take their lucky first sip from the fountain. (It’s a tradition on the first day of classes: drink from the Old Well for good luck all year. I went ahead and took a sip too. It couldn’t hurt, right?)

Here in the admissions office, with our new first-year class settled onto campus, we’re turning our attention toward the prospective students of the class of 2016. If you’re a rising senior getting ready to apply to Carolina, hello! We’re excited to work with you this year and we’re looking forward to receiving your application and learning more about you.

For those of you who are new to the blog, let me introduce myself. I’m Julie Tucker, an Assistant Director here in the Admissions Office. I, with the help of several of my fellow admissions counselors, have the great pleasure of posting what we hope is helpful information here on the blog, and we do our best to respond to all of the questions and comments that you post. I don’t always know the answers to your questions but I have gotten pretty good at scouting them out. This usually involves me pestering my coworkers. Luckily they are quite patient with me.

We’re already getting a number of questions from students who have started working on their applications, so I thought I’d share some FAQs. If you have additional questions, please let us know in the comments. (Please do read through all the FAQs and comments before you post your question though. You can also look for the answer to your question in Ask Admissions. You may well find the answer is already online!)

Should I apply through the Common Application or through the College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC)?
You can choose whichever is more convenient for you. The questions and requirements are the same, so it does not matter to us which you choose. You’ll want to find out whether the other colleges you’re planning to apply to accept either of these applications, as that may help you decide which application to complete.

(If you’re a transfer applicant, check out our Transfer page to find out which application you should use.)

What are the deadlines?
Our deadlines have changed a bit this year, so view our deadlines here. Not sure which deadline to choose? Check out this post, where I wrote about the difference between our two deadlines.

How do I submit my supplemental materials?
When you complete either the Common Application or the CFNC application online, the instructions will give you full details on how to submit your counselor statement, teacher recommendation, and transcript.

If you’re applying through the Common Application, you’ll indicate on the application which teacher(s) and counselor will submit materials on your behalf. You’ll enter their email contact information, and the Common App will send them instructions on how to submit the materials. They’ll submit the information directly to the Common App, so they’ll only have to upload it once no matter how many schools you apply to. You’ll want to touch base with your teacher and counselor to make sure they’ve gotten the email from the Common App, and they are all set to submit the materials.

If you’re submitting a CFNC application, you’ll need to ask your teacher and counselor to submit these materials directly to us. Your teacher may submit the letter of recommendation by email (uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu) or by mail. Your counselor may submit your Counselor Statement and official transcript through a secure electronic delivery service (Docufide or Naviance), or they may be mailed to us. Talk to your counselor to find out which method he/she prefers.

How many letters of recommendation should I send?
We only require one letter and generally find one letter to be sufficient. However, if you’d like to submit additional letters, you’re welcome to do so.

Can I submit additional materials (resume, etc?)
You’re welcome to submit additional materials by sending them directly to us by email (uncsubmit@admissions.unc.edu) or by mail. Keep in mind these materials can’t be returned and we can’t view any multimedia materials submitted by mail (CDs, DVDs, bulky portfolios, etc). If you’d like to share artwork or multimedia work, the best method is to display it online through a website, blog, or online portfolio. You can then include the URL in your application.

Whenever you submit materials to us by mail or email, it’s very helpful if you include your full name and date of birth, so we can easily match it to your application.

How many essays are required?
Check out this post for a full listing of our essay prompts. You’ll choose one prompt from the Common App, and one prompt from our supplemental form. (If you are applying through CFNC, all of these prompts are listed on the main CFNC application, and you’ll choose two.)

When will you receive my application?
Whether you apply through the Common App or CFNC, we won’t receive any of your application information until 1-2 weeks after you submit your application online. After we receive your application, we’ll send you an email with instructions on how to set up your MyUNC account. You’ll be able to track the status of your application and, when the time comes, view your decision through MyUNC.

What do I do if I have technical problems as I complete the Common App?
The Common App has a huge online help database called the Knowledge Base. It is full of helpful information. If you don’t find the answer to your question there, you can contact them online for more help.

What other questions do you have? Please let us know!

First Deadline is Approaching!

Hard to believe but our first deadline for first-year admission, November 1, is just a week and a half away. If you're considering applying, I really encourage you to get your application in by our first deadline. Why, you ask?

1. It’s really not that hard to meet the deadline. You’ve still got 10 days. And the only thing that you need to have submitted by November 1 is the application itself, your essays, and the application fee. It’s fine if your transcripts, test scores, and recommendations arrive after the deadline. Also, keep in mind that any test scores from tests you take in November will be considered with your application, even if you are applying for the first deadline. So really, it’s just those pesky essays. Buckle down and get them done. You’ll be glad you did.
2. More chance for scholarships. The earlier you get your application in, the more time we’ll have to consider you for merit scholarships. Some scholarships require that you apply by the first deadline. Others don’t require it, but it gives the selection committees more time to do their work. This isn’t a hard and fast rule; plenty of scholarships are awarded to second-deadline applicants. Definitely do your research about all the different scholarships available, both through the University and from outside sources. But for the best chance of being considered for the greatest number of scholarships, it's best to apply by November 1.
3. You don’t want to spend your winter holiday filling out applications. I mean, who would? And if you’re applying to a lot of schools, it’s at least one application that you won’t have to worry about while you’re stuffed with holiday turkey.

Questions? Please let us know. We hope to see your application soon!

One Week Until the First Deadline!

Our first deadline is this coming Monday, November 2. If you can get your application in next week, that'll be one less thing to stress about come January. Check out the post I wrote last year "Why Apply First Deadline" for a few good reasons to get that application in by Monday!

A few notes about first deadline applications:

• First and most important: Only your application, application fee, and essays must be submitted by November 2. All other materials (your transcripts, test scores, letters of recommendation, and counselor statement) may arrive after the deadline. It's helpful if you get them to us as soon as possible since we're not able to review your application until we have all required items, but it's okay if these items arrive in the weeks after the deadline.
• It may take 4 to 6 weeks for us to process items that you submit. This is a conservative estimate--in all likelihood these items will get processed more quickly than that. But please have a little patience and allow us plenty of time to process the mountains of mail that we are receiving in our office. As I said above, these items do not need to be submitted by November 2, so don't stress!
• Materials such as recommendation letters and transcripts that you mail in BEFORE you submit your application will not show up on your MyUNC portal until AFTER you submit your application. We don't match up these materials with your application until after you submit. So go ahead and submit your application when it's ready; you don't have to wait until the other items disappear from your checklist.

What other questions do you have? Please let us know!

Julie

Updated Application FAQs

I can’t find the Counselor Statement.
You may download the Counselor Statement here.

How do I submit a letter of recommendation?
While filling out your online application, you may specify the name and email of a recommender. Then, when you submit your application, we will send an email to your recommender with instructions on your behalf. Alternatively, if you want your teacher to submit a paper letter, you may download the Teacher Recommendation here.

I selected Deadline 1, but meant to select Deadline 2. How can I change it?
Since you meant to choose regular notification deadline, just be sure to submit your application by January 15. There is no need to contact us. You will then receive your decision by the end of March.

I selected Deadline 2, but meant to select Deadline 1. How can I change it?
Since you meant to choose our early notification deadline, please be sure to submit your application by November 2. When you do submit your application, please notify us at unchelp@admissions.unc.edu to request that your deadline be changed. You will then receive your decision by the end of January.

Can I print out my application?
When you select the option to submit your application, you will be able to view a report of your application. When viewing the application report, please use your mouse to right-click on the application, and choose the option to “Print.” Once your application is submitted, it is no longer available for viewing or printing.

I had a problem paying with my credit card. May I pay by credit card?
We are sorry you experienced problems when paying your application fee. Please follow the steps below to pay your application fee online:

1. Log back into your MyUNC account.
2. Click on your “My Application…” link.
3. Click Continue on the page that indicates you have attempted to pay your fee.
4. Click the “Pay by Check” option. Note that the Credit Card option does not appear.
5. To pay by credit card, close your current webpage and repeat steps 2 and 3
6. The Credit Card payment option should be available now.

Where are the residency forms?
When you complete our online application, you will be prompted to answer a few simple questions that in most cases will fulfill our requirements for determining residency. If not, you will be prompted to select and complete an additional form.

How do I change my major?
You may change your major after you submit your application by contacting us by phone at (919) 966-3621 or emailing us at unchelp@admissions.unc.edu.

Application Tips Omnibus

Over the past year or two, we've posted several times with tips for the application, so I thought I'd repost the links here for those of you applying this year. I hope you'll find these helpful as you complete your applications. Please let us know what questions you have--and if you have suggestions for another "tips" post, let us know that too and we'll get right on it!

Should I Apply First Deadline or Second Deadline?
Three or Four Hints about Essays
Tips for the Activities Section

-Julie

Three or Four Hints About Essays (Reposted)

We received this essay two years ago, in response to a prompt that asked students to choose and describe a logo that encapsulates who they are:

Logos are symbols that are used to describe or stand for objects, places, or people. If I were to choose a logo for myself it would be a boat.

One reason I would choose my logo to be a boat is because I love to fish and most of the time when I go fishing it takes place on a boat. I try to go fishing on my boat as often as I can. I usually go out every weekend and if I have free time after school I don’t mind going in the late afternoon. My favorite fishing is waking up early and going way offshore. I like this best because the fish are bigger.

Another reason I would choose a boat as my logo is that I’d much rather drive a boat than a car. …

And so it went on — for five well-organized but tough-to-wade-through paragraphs. After reading it, we knew that this student liked his boat. But we didn’t know much else about him.

Now here's an excerpt from a different essay — one that left a different impression.

It seemed like everything exciting in the world was about to happen to you when you were ten. Even in the books I read, ten-year-olds seemed always about to embark on some new adventure. Wendy from Peter Pan was ten. So was Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, and Anne in Anne of Green Gables. Secretly I had a feeling that life would now start being like a book, full of humor and excitement. I was ten years old, and I thought I could do anything. Well, no, that’s not true. I knew I could do anything.

This student was writing in response to a prompt that asked, “What advice would you give to a ten-year-old?” She ended like this:

Keep that feeling, that confidence, as long as you can. It’s a way of looking at things that makes the whole world seem as if it’s just a little more brightly colored, a little more gentle. If you don’t know the odds, you may find yourself accomplishing anything.

Where did this essay succeed where the Boat essay fell short? Here are three ideas about these two essays, and about essays in general.

1. Voice matters as much as content. Good essays sound as though they were written by real people — ideally, smart, curious, good-hearted people.

2. Little is better than big. Small subjects close at hand are better than big subjects that are beyond any writer’s grasp. Students are tempted to write about big things, about ultimate experiences — the best thing that ever happened to me; the worst thing that ever happened to me. Almost no one can write well about this kind of thing, and students should generally steer clear.

3. Others are better than self. Not everyone shares this view. In fact we often advise students that the essay is a chance to say something about themselves — preferably something winning and definitive. But in my view this is really a tall order for any student, and in fact it’s something of a curse. It’s the rare writer and the rarer seventeen-year-old who can write self-consciously in this way. Better to write about something else, especially since we learn a lot about others by listening to them talk about something not themselves.

To illustrate this point, here’s a third essay from two years ago. The prompt read: “Describe a mistake you’ve seen some leader make.”

Head over heels, my grandfather entered the grave. He was merely ashes at that point, stored in a modest cardboard box. Before his death, he was a dedicated minister and teacher. Despite this, the pastor in charge of the internment ceremony bent down slightly and tossed Granddaddy into the hole. The priest let gravity take my grandfather three feet down when he was supposed to be ensuring a journey many miles upward.

I watched disbelief spread like a wave around the circle of family members. Their eyes fixated on the hole as my grandfather bumped and tumbled into his final resting place like a man in a barrel going over Niagara Falls.

The pastor was the leader of the ceremony, the emcee of mourning and remembrance. …

“The emcee of mourning and remembrance”: I wish I'd written those words. Wouldn’t we all want to teach this student? Wouldn’t we want to learn alongside her?

Three ideas: Voice as much as content. Little better than big. Others better than self.

And this fourth one: stories help. If you get stuck, tell us a story. Humans are suckers for stories, because our stories tell us something about ourselves, and because our stories matter.

--Stephen Farmer

(Reposted, with a few changes, from October 2008.)

Online Application, it's Shiny and New!

How is the online first-year application going for you all? As you may or may not have noticed, we have a shiny new online application this year. It's part of a fancy new, University-wide computer system that will transform the way students interact with the University online--everything from completing their application to viewing their financial aid information to registering for classes. As one of my coworkers says, "It's slick." So far, I agree that it's pretty cool and I hope you all are finding the online application easy to use.

A couple questions have come up from students about the application:

Does it matter what major I choose as I create my application?
No. We only use that information to assign you an advisor if you are admitted and enroll here. It doesn't play any role whatsoever in our admissions decisions, so you can choose anything you like. And if you change your mind in two months (or two years) that's not a problem at all.

Why can't I start a transfer application?
So far, we only have the First-Year Application and the Nursing Application for Spring 2010 up. The regular Transfer Application for Fall 2010 will be available in September. In the meantime you can get a head-start on your essay (see below).

What other questions do you have? Let us know!

Julie

Pardon Our Dust

Next week will mark a turning point for our office and for the University, as we go live with a new administrative system called ConnectCarolina.

Eventually, ConnectCarolina will provide a consistent environment for online interaction with UNC-Chapel Hill. Prospective and current students will use it heavily, as will faculty and staff.

For now, prospective undergraduate students will be using the system to apply for admission, check the status of their applications, and register for campus tours and other events.

We hope the new system will make it easier for you to interact with us over the course of the coming year. We also hope you’ll bear with us as we work through any problems we might face.

Although we’ve built ConnectCarolina carefully and believe it’s ready to go, we know we’ll need to keep tinkering with it for months to come. So please pardon our dust -- and as always, please let us know how we may serve you better.

--Stephen Farmer

What's Your Life Goal?

I spent much of last week on vacation with my family, which includes our dog Samwise, shown here in mid-retrieve.

On the ride home, our daughter told us about a conversation she’d recently had with two of her fourth-grade friends about something they called their “life goals.”

“Jenny’s life goal is to try mahi-mahi,” she said. When we asked her why mahi-mahi, she thought for a minute. “I don’t know,” she said finally. “Maybe because she’s never tasted it.”

She went on to tell us about John, whose life goal is either to get a minifridge or to become a garbage collector -- the latter, we were told, "because he just likes the stench."

People who work in admissions like to talk about "passion," which I suppose is our word for "life goal." It's not a word I'm fond of, mainly because students tend to hear it not as passion but as Passion -- something cosmic, final, and fantastic, rather than something familiar, provisional, and real.

We ask about your passion not so that we can weigh your aspirations, much less pass judgment upon them. Rather, we ask because we long to know who you are.

Whatever drives or intrigues you -- whether it's medicine or monetary theory, travelling or retrieving, gustation or refrigeration or sanitation -- is exactly what we hope you'll show us should you choose to apply to Carolina.

In the meantime, please know that we wish you all the best.

--Stephen Farmer

Choosing Senior Year Courses

Now that we've wrapped up our work on the class that will enter this fall, we're turning our attention in earnest to the classes that will follow. If you're thinking about applying next year, I hope you've already seen our essay questions, and I wish you luck with them. And if you're still debating which classes you should take, I hope what follows will be helpful.

We generally like to see students take at least one course in each of the five core academic disciplines--English, math, foreign language, lab science, and social science--right through to the end of their senior year. We also like to see students taking the top course offered in most of these disciplines--say, at least four out of the five--by the time they're seniors.

We think this way not because this is a formula that every student must rigidly follow, but because this kind of curriculum comes closer than any other to the kind our students pursue in their first two years at Carolina. And since one purpose of admission is to make a good match between student and school, it makes sense to us to take into account the courses our candidates are taking in high school, and whether those courses match well with the courses we expect students to take at Carolina.

Again, this is general guidance--not a formula, and not a guarantee of any particular outcome, good or bad. Great students may have good and thoughtful reasons for doing something different--and if that's the case, we'd love to hear about those reasons through the applications these students eventually submit.

Good luck this summer, and beyond. And please let us know if we may help you in any way.

--Stephen Farmer

Final 2010 Essay Questions

Thanks to everyone who voted for their favorite essay questions. We've now finalized the seven essay prompts for the 2010 First-Year Application. So now you can spend your entire summer vacation crafting your essays if you like. The rest of the application will be available by mid-August.

Below are the new essay prompts. You'll respond to two of the prompts below. One of your essays should be short (about 250 words), and one essay should be longer(about 500 words).

1. People find many ways to express their inner world. Some write novels; others paint, perform, or debate; still others design elegant solutions to complex mathematical problems. How do you express your inner world, and how does the world around you respond?
2. It’s easy to identify with the hero—the literary or historical figure who saves the day. Have you ever identified with a figure who wasn’t a hero—a villain or a scapegoat, a bench-warmer or a bit player? If so, tell us why this figure appealed to you—and if your opinion changed over time, tell us about that, too.
3. Carolina students conduct original research and work to solve problems in almost every imaginable field. If you could spend a semester researching a specific topic or problem, what would you choose and why?
4. After your long and happy life, your family must choose no more than a dozen words to adorn your headstone. What do you hope they choose, and why?
5. We tend to spend our time doing the things we know we do well—running because we’re good runners or painting because we’re talented artists. Tell us about a time when you tried something for which you had no talent. How did it go?
6. What’s the best advice you’ve ever received? What’s the best you’ve ever given?
7. If you have written an essay for another school’s application that you really like, feel free to use it as your short or long essay for us. Please be sure to tell us (a) what essay you are answering and (b) why you think this essay represents you well (your explanation will not be included in the essay word count).